


The Long Road Home

by TheCrusaderKing



Category: The Walking Dead & Related Fandoms, The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Arguing, Canon-Typical Violence, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/F, Not Beta Read, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Snark, So Much Arguing, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, Violence, it may not be an entirely linear process, what i'm saying is that there'll be ups and downs
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-21
Updated: 2020-09-18
Packaged: 2021-03-04 09:21:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 58,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24847489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheCrusaderKing/pseuds/TheCrusaderKing
Summary: After being separated from Christa by bandits, Clementine meets someone new as she trudges through the forest in search of food. Together, they and others will have to survive everything the post-apocalyptic world can throw at them, from walkers to bandits. That is, assuming that they don't end up killing each other first.
Relationships: Clementine (Walking Dead) & Original Female Character(s), Clementine (Walking Dead)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 51
Kudos: 34





	1. Inauspicious Meetings

**Clementine**

Clementine’s whole body ached as she trudged down the old dirt path snaking its way through the foreboding forest. Her legs were sore and stiff from all she had been through in the last few hours, and her stomach groaned in protest at how empty it was.

_ ‘I just need to find someplace to rest’  _ Clementine thought to herself as she soldiered onwards. Every once and a while she’d stop to rest her legs, only to look around at the dark forest surrounding her and realize that she wasn’t safe where she was.  _ ‘Hopefully there’ll be food when I find a place’.  _

Looking at the path ahead to check for possible threats, she noticed something out of place with all the nature around her. As she approached, she saw what appeared to be a light blue and green backpack propped up against a rock just off the path. Her heart rate increasing at the possibility of supplies, and her stomach growling at the potential promise of food, she sped up her pace, ignoring her protesting leg muscles.

She fell to her knees as she came to a stop next to the backpack, eager to see what was inside. Now that she was up close, she could see that the pack was absolutely bulging with whatever was inside. Clementine grinned despite her exhaustion as she reached for the zipper to unveil her prize.  _ ‘Maybe my luck is finally turning around’.  _ She thought eagerly as she opened up the pack. As the contents were revealed, she couldn’t help but gasp in wonder.

Cans, crackers, energy bars, juice boxes and water bottles, this bag was absolutely bursting with food! As she rummaged through the bag, Clementine’s mind was racing as she tried to calculate how long all this food would last her. Definitely a week, maybe more if she paced herself! 

Her thoughts came to a sudden, brutal halt as she uncovered what was perhaps the best prize of all. “Oh my god” she whispered out loud as she laid eyes on the pristine, unopened package of chocolate chip cookies.  _ ‘It’s been so long since I’ve tasted chocolate’.  _ Clementine giggled, almost manic as she realized that this unexpected find may have just saved her.

In fact, in her utter glee, Clementine had not stopped to ask herself what a bag full of supplies was doing out in the middle of nowhere. If she hadn’t been so distracted with her prize, she may have noticed the rapid footsteps barreling towards her.

At once the breath was knocked out of Clementine as a weight smashed into her side with all the force of a speeding train. She rolled on the ground several times before coming to a stop on her belly, her brief attempt to get up swiftly thwarted as a weight settled on her back. For a moment, Clementine was terrified that her carelessness had finally gotten her killed.  _ ‘Just like Omid, just like… Lee’,  _ but the expected sensation of teeth tearing into flesh never came.

As she struggled against her attacker, her wits reemerged, and she realized that her attacker was, in fact, a person, judging by all the shouting. She was still too disorientated to make out everything being said, but the words. “Back off you thief!” Came through loud and clear. Finally, her struggles bore fruit, and she managed to lash out at her attacker with an elbow, knocking them away and allowing her to roll onto her back. Before she could get her bearings though, her unexpected foe was back on her, and Clementine’s vision was suddenly filled as her amber eyes met an angry green pair glaring down at her.

**??????**

_ A few minutes earlier… _

_ ‘Gotta find shelter soon’  _ the girl thought to herself as she rested her feet, leaning against a large rock she had come across on the forest trail. Her bulging backpack was resting next to her on the same rock. It was full of her hard-won food and supplies, enough to keep her going for weeks easy. What hadn’t been easy was finding them.  _ ‘If I had just taken a few moments longer, those creeps would have been all over me; I would’ve…’  _ she stopped that thought dead in its tracks. It was no use to think about how things could have gone. All that mattered was that she was alive, and she had plenty of food. ‘ _ Would’ve been nice to find some medical supplies though’.  _

The girl's train of thought was brought to a halt as she heard a faint, yet bloodcurdling noise. Footsteps, coming down the old dirt path. Immediately she was on her feet, ready to run or hide as needed. She looked down at her pack and realized that she’d never be able to run with it, as heavy as the backpack was. Looking around, she saw a tree large enough to hide her small frame, and realized that she’d either have to hide and hope that whatever was coming her way would just pass her by, or make a run for it without the food she’d nearly died for. Knowing she didn’t have much time, she made a quick choice.

From her hiding spot behind the tree, she listened as the footsteps came closer and closer to her position. Her heart skipped and beat when they stopped suddenly, and then sped up to a run. ‘ _ So, not a creep then. Shit’.  _ Suddenly, the steps halted with a thud, as though the mystery person had fallen over.. After a moment of indecision, the girl risked a peek at whoever had interrupted her rest…

Peering around the tree, she saw a small figure, around her size, on their knees by the rock where she’d been resting. She fingered the sheathed survival knife in her jean pocket, but decided to leave it where it was. Whoever this person was, they seemed to be a kid like her, and she’d rather not escalate things too far if she didn’t have to.

_ ‘It’s a girl’  _ she realized.  _ ‘And probably around my age, too _ . _ ’ _ This girl wore a purple long-sleeved shirt with stripes on the sleeves, jeans, and a blue and white ball cap. Her curly black hair was tied into two pigtails at the back, and her skin was a deep tan shade.  _ ‘But why’s she crouched over ther’ _ \- At once the girl realized what purple shirt was looking at, and her vision went  **red** . 

Before she could fully process her own actions, she rushed from her hiding place and slammed into the little brat who dared to try and take what she’d worked so very hard for. The little thief rolled several times before coming to a stop on her stomach, and before she could get up, the girl was on her back, trying to hold her down. 

‘Trying’ was the keyword in this scenario, as purple shirt was putting up one hell of a struggle. She wriggled and twisted like a snake trying to break dance, almost bucking her off several times. Along the way, the girl found herself shouting in rage, although if someone had asked her what exactly she had said, she wouldn’t have been able to tell them. Her mind was clouded with anger, as she tried to pin the other girl down. “Get the hell away from my stuff! Back off you thief!”

Suddenly, the girl founded herself dislodged from her position of dominance as the little thief below her struck her with an elbow, stunning her. Unluckily for this thief however, her opponent was no slouch either, and by the time she managed to roll onto her back, she found herself pinned to the ground yet again. 

She stared down into the panicked amber eyes of the girl beneath her, and opened her mouth to tell her to just give up already, when suddenly she felt a knee plant itself firmly in her abdomen. Wheezing in pain at the sudden counterattack, she fell off of her opponent, leaving herself wide open to attack.

**Clementine**

Gasping for breath, Clementine quickly pushed herself up to a sitting position, ready for another attack any second. Seeing her would-be attacker gasping on the floor, Clem decided that now was the time to take the upper hand and get some answers.

She scrambled over to the other girl and straddled her, grabbing her arms to keep her from fighting back.

Clementine found herself staring down at the other girl, for it was definitely a girl she was fighting, and one around her age at that! The girl’s pale skin was flushed red from her exertions, and her forest green eyes were brimming with rage and desperation. Her hair was a sandy brown color, cut short to her ears, and she wore a faded pink hoodie that seemed to have been repaired in several places with red thread. 

As Clementine examined the girl, her attacker continued to rant and shout at her. Words like “thief!” and “brat!” were being spit out at an impressive rate.

Clementine waited for the other girl to tire herself out, and then she started asking her questions.

“Who are you?” 

“Screw you, you damn thief!”

“Why did you attack me?” 

“You tried to take my stuff you-you dirty thief!”

“That’s your backpack?” 

“Of course it is, you stupid brat!”

“Do you know any other insults besides brat or thief?”

“Screw you!”

Clementine sighed, and, finally, asked “If I let you go, do you promise to not attack me again?”

For a moment, Clementine thought the fight was back on, as the other girl scrunched up her face and glared up at her. To her surprise however, the girl simply growled out a “fine” and went limp.

Cautiously, Clementine stood up, still holding onto the other girl's arms. Quickly then, she let go and scrambled away, wary of a double-cross.

Instead, the other girl simply got up and rushed over to the backpack, frantically pawing through it, as though making sure that Clementine hadn’t pocketed anything. When Clem made a step forwards, the other girl whipped around to face her, hand on the knife Clementine just noticed that she had.

“So, uh-” she paused for a moment as the other girl glowered at her. “My name’s Clementine. What’s yours?” She asked, somewhat stilted, conscious of how strange it was to be so polite with someone who’d just attacked her

For a moment she thought miss pink hoodie wasn’t going to answer, when suddenly she huffed and ground out. “Jessie… It’s Jessie”. 

“So uh… Jessie. Any particular reason you decided to leave a bag full of supplies out where anyone could find it?” Perhaps it wasn’t the best idea to antagonize the other girl when they’d just stopped fighting, but Clementine was feeling quite irritable after having been attacked so suddenly, and it bled into her words.

Jessie reddened at that. “Is it normal for you to just go around trying to take stuff that doesn’t belong to you?” She retorted, clearly not willing to let Clementine have the upper hand in this argument.

For a moment Clementine thought back years ago, to a beat up old station wagon in the woods. “I try not to.” She replied testily. She sighed, then continued “look, I’m sorry okay? I didn’t know that it was your stuff. It’s just… I’m just really hungry.”

For a moment, Jessie’s eyes held sympathy, but before Clementine could capitalize on that, they hardened again, and Jessie spit out with perhaps more venom than necessary “That’s not my problem. You have no right to try and steal from me, especially after what I went through to get this stuff”

Clementine’s eyes narrowed, and before she could stop herself, she bit back. “I said I was sorry! You don’t need to be such a jerk about it!”

Jessie scoffed “A jerk? Well at least I’m not some little brat who goes around trying to take people’s stuff!”

Clementine glowered at that. “ _ Little brat? _ I’m the same age as you! Besides, if anyone’s a brat around here, it’s the girl who threw a  _ temper tantrum  _ when someone touched her stuff!”

Jessie bared her teeth, eyes full of rage, and for a moment, Clementine thought the other girl would charge her again. She tensed up, ready for a fight, only for both her and Jessie to jump in fright as a growl emanated from a nearby bush. 

Jessie pulled out her knife and unsheathed it, staring at the bush as it rustled, while Clementine, well aware that she was effectively defenceless, prepared herself to run if necessary. What emerged from the bush was something neither of them could have expected.

As they watched the bush warily, united in fear, at least for the moment, a dog emerged from the foliage, panting and looking back at them with suspicion, no doubt drawn by all the noise they had made in their struggle. At once Clementine relaxed, cheered to see an actual dog after so long. Jessie on the other hand, remained wary; knife raised and ready for trouble.

Clementine started forward slowly, not wanting to scare it away with sudden movements. “Hey there buddy… where are your owners?”

Jessie cringed as Clementine drew nearer to the disheveled creature. “Are you crazy!?” She whisper-yelled, seemingly worried about startling the dog. “Don’t go near that thing! It could be rabid or something!”

Clementine simply scoffed and knelt down to see the dogs tag. “Why would you care what I do? You seem perfectly willing to let me starve to death.”

Jessie flushed, and then scowled. “Fine! Get your face ripped off for all I care!” 

Clementine smirked at her small victory, and reached out to check the dogs tag. “Don’t worry boy, I’m not going to hurt you, I promise. I just want to know your name okay?”

Holding the tag gingerly, she held it up slightly to the light so she could read it. “Huh, so your name is… Sam? That’s a very nice name for a cutie like you, isn’t it Sam!” She fought the urge to look over to where she could hear Jessie snort at her display of affection.

“Do you know where food is boy? I need to find some since  _ somebody here _ isn’t willing to share.” She looked over in time to see Jessie scowl and look away.  _ ‘Another point for me.’ _ , she smiled mentally. 

She was broken out of her self-satisfaction as Sam turned and started to lumber away through the forest. “ _ Hey! _ Wait for me!” She cried, rushing after him.

**Jessie**

Jessie scowled at Clementine’s back as she chased after the dog, fully prepared to just take her bag and start walking in the opposite direction. That  _ was  _ the plan. At least until a thought popped into her head.  _ ‘That dog must live somewhere nearby. If it found a place safe enough that no creep managed to get their hands on it yet, then maybe it’ll be safe enough for me to stay for a little while?’  _ The thought of spending any more time with that little thief didn’t exactly fill her with delight, but at this point, anything was better than the open forest, where any passing creep or bandit could get her if she tried to sleep.

Sighing, Jessie grabbed her backpack, struggling a little under the sheer weight of it, and set off after Clementine and the dog, hoping she wouldn’t end up regretting this.

It didn’t take long for Clementine to notice Jessie trailing behind her. “So, you decided to tag along?” She asked, smiling slightly.

Jessie just sighed, “It’s not like I have much choice. I can’t stay here in the middle of the woods. Hopefully this mutt is going someplace where the creeps can’t get me, at least for tonight”.

Clementine gasped, offended on Sam’s behalf. “Don’t call him a mutt! He’s a perfectly good dog, aren’t you boy?” She cooed at the dog ahead of her, who turned his head back for just a moment to look at her and bark once, before continuing to wherever it was he was going. She looked thoughtful for a moment. “So, you call them creeps then? The dead?”

Jessie nodded “Why, what do you call them?” 

“Walkers”

“What about the ones that run?”

For a moment Clementine cringed in fear at those words, at least until she saw the smirk on Jessie’s face. “Very funny, jerk” she grumbled, blushing slightly. Jessie simply laughed.

Their conversation came to an end as the forest opened up into a campsite. Jessie’s heart sank as she saw the dilapidated state of the place. The torn up tents, the rusty old camper, the old cans and wrappers strewn across the ground.  _ ‘Is this where that dog’s been living all this time? It’s a total dump! Creeps would tear this place up if they found me here. Hell, from the looks of it, they already did!’  _

Weighing her options, Jessie huffed and decided that she may as well check the place; just in case one of the tents was in better condition than they looked at first glance. It was a long shot, but it was all she had at the moment.

While Jessie was stewing in her thoughts, Clementine had already begun to search the old campsite, probably looking for something to eat. Jessie say her rummage through old toys, empty boxes, and piles of trash strewn about the place, with no luck. 

Coming to an old trash can, she hesitated for a moment, disgust clear on her face. Finally, she stuck her hands in and started to rummage through it. Jessie watched her paw through the rusty old bin, and for a moment, she thought about offering the girl some of her food. She clamped down on that rebellious thought right away.  _ ‘She’ll find something eventually. Besides, she’s not my responsibility. I just need to focus on finding somewhere safe for the night.’  _

She offloaded her backpack by a log, and started to inspect one of the tents, noting with distaste how exposed it was to the elements, not to mention any creeps that happened to pass by. Jessie was startled from her inspection as she heard a gasp from the other girl currently inhabiting the campsite.

Clementine held an unopened can in her hands, which she presented to her new dog companion like some sort of trophy or grand prize. “Look boy, a can!”

Jessie went back to checking the place out as Clementine wandered off in search of the now barking dog, only to be startled again by a girlish shout of effort and the sound of wood hitting flesh. She turned, hand on her knife, to see Clementine beating a creep over the head with a tree branch, as the dog growled at the rotting creature, as though offering moral support.

For a moment Jessie thought about running over to help, until she saw that the creep was bound tightly to a tree by rope, no doubt a last ditch attempt to keep him from attacking others.  _ ‘She can handle it’  _ Jessie thought to herself, though she continued to spectate Clementine’s efforts curiously.

With one last yell, Clementine brought the heavy branch down on the creeps head, shattering its skull with a sickening crunch. “I… think you got it.” Jessie offered, not entirely sure why she was trying to make conversation.

The little brat looked down at the corpse, and then over at Jessie with a sardonic expression on her face. “Gee thanks. How would I have ever figured that out without your expert opinion?” She reached down to yank a knife out of the corpses arm, as Jessie scowled and looked away, wishing she’d never bothered in the first place.

As it dawned on Jessie that this place was worthless as far as shelter went, she noticed out of the corner of her eye as Clementine cut into her can with the knife she had just pulled out of a dead guy's arm. ‘ _ That can’t be sanitary.’  _ she grimaced. Jessie watched as the would-be thief dug into the can with her hand, shoveling what appeared to be beans into her mouth.

Jessie walked over to her backpack, ready to get out of here and hopefully find someplace better before night feel, when she heard Clementine cry out in surprise.

That dog had knocked the can out of her hands, and was currently scarfing the beans down as fast as he could. Clementine reached down to try and take them back, when suddenly he latched onto her arm with his teeth, dragging her down onto the ground!

At once Jessie was rushing over, not sure why she was risking her own skin like this, but knowing deep in her bones that she couldn’t just watch this happen. She aimed a kick right into the dogs malnourished side, but it wouldn’t let go. Clementine had grabbed the can, and was bashing the dog on its head, screaming in pain as it tore into her arm.

Jessie kicked it again, and finally it let go of Clementine’s arm, only to lunge for her throat instead. Luckily for her, she managed to catch it right in the chest with her foot, launching it back and over a log, where it remained out of sight.

Jessie crouched next to the other girl, watching her as she gasped on the ground, Clementine just stared at the bite on her arm, her breathing growing faster as panic set in. “Holy shit! Are you okay!?” Jessie said quickly, staring at the nasty bite wound. 

“I uh, It doesn’t really hurt that bad honestly. I-is that good or bad?” Clementine stammered as she stared at her wound.

Jessie raised her eyebrows in concern. “Thats, uh. I don’t think that’s a good sign. I think you may be in shock.”

Clementine tried to stand up without putting pressure on her injured arm. “What happened to Sam?” she panted.

Jessie scoffed. “You’re worried about the dumb mutt who just tried to kill you? Ugh, fine; I’ll go check I guess.”

Jessie pulled out her knife, and slowly approached the log that Sam had fallen over. Her eyes widened as she heard high-pitched whining and the sound of mad scrambling to get away. She suddenly felt sick as she saw the once vicious dog, now impaled on what appeared to be tent spikes. She could hear Clementine walk up beside her, clutching her arm. “Oh my god” the dark haired girl whispered, staring at the dog she had thought to be her friend as he whined and writhed against the pain of his impalement.

“We should… we should put him out of his misery” Clementine whispered, staring at the sorry sight before her.

Jessie stared at her in surprise. “Are you crazy!? That dog just tried to kill you! He deserves everything he gets!” She spit out, feeling no empathy for a dog that just tried to kill someone.

Clementine just stared at her, pleading, until finally she broke. “Ugh, fine then. Do uh… do you want to do it, or did you want me to?”

The amber-eyed girl looked at Sam writhing on the ground, and then back at Jessie with hopeful eyes.

Jessie huffed in exasperation. “Okay then… I’ll take care of it.” She knelt down next to the dog, knife at the ready. “I hope you’re grateful for this, you dumb mutt.” she muttered resentfully as her knife sliced through the dogs throat. A high-pitched whine cut through the air, and Jessie’s heart clenched despite herself. With a few last pitiful whimpers, Sam slumped down and ceased moving.

Jessie sighed as she stood up and looked at the injured girl next to her. “Alright then, it’s done.”

Clementine nodded. “Thank you.” she whispered. Still staring at the body before her.

The brunette looked around at the ruined campsite for a moment, then turned back to Clementine. “We can’t stay here, it’s too open. Any creep passing by would smell the blood from your wound and be on us in seconds.”

Clementine looked down at her injured arm, and then over at Jessie’s backpack hopefully. “I don’t suppose you have any medical supplies in that pack that I missed?”

Jessie flushed and looked down at her feet. “Uh… no. I couldn’t find anything like that at the last few places I checked.”

She flushed even harder at the expression of disbelief on Clementine’s face. “Hey, like you have room to talk! How much stuff do you have on you right now!?”

Clementine sighed and looked down at her feet. “That’s what I thought. Now let’s get out of here and find a place where we can actually rest without worrying about a creep coming along to bite our faces off.”

**Clementine**

Clementine took a few steps before Jessie’s words registered in her mind. “Wait, you want to go with me? I thought you hated me!” They had known each other for less than an hour, and that time had been mostly filled with fighting, bickering, and sniping back and forth at each other. Clementine had thought Jessie would want to get as far away from her as possible.

The other girl simply sighed and stared at the bite on Clementine’s arm. “Look, I may not like you, but I’m not a monster okay? You won’t last a day with a wound like that. You were probably useless before, but now you won’t even be able to fight off a creep. Leaving you alone would basically be, like, indirect murder or something.”

Clementine furrowed her brow at the other girl’s words. “Useless? Maybe you have a poor memory or something, but I had you pinned back in the clearing.”  _ ‘Useless? Her? This girl definitely didn’t know what she was talking about!’ _

Jessie scoffed, her pink hoodie wrinkling as she crossed her arms. “ _ As if!  _ You may have had the upper hand for a bit, but if you hadn’t chickened out, I totally would have kicked your ass!”

Clementine sighed loudly as she felt a throbbing in her forehead that had nothing to do with the bite on her arm. This girl was starting to give her a serious headache. “Look, I can take care of myself, okay? If you want to go, I can manage just fine on my own.”

The source of her irritation growled in frustration. “Look, I said I’d go with you, and that’s what I’m gonna do. God, are you always this stubborn!? Let me just grab my pack, and we’ll get out of here.”

Jessie lugged her backpack over her shoulder, visibly struggling under the weight. She marched to the edge of the campsite, and turned to look at Clementine, impatience written all over her face. Clementine walked over to join her, hoping they’d be able to find medical supplies and shelter before it was too late.

They’d been walking for almost an hour, without any sign of a house or anything that could possibly hold the supplies she needed. The forest had grown thicker since they started walking, with hardly any light able to reach the ground for them to see where they were going.

Clementine’s arm felt like it was on fire.  _ ‘The shock must have worn off’  _ she thought to herself, trying not to let tears escape.  _ ‘I wonder if this is what Lee felt before he… no, I can’t think about that right now. I need to stay focused.’ _

As they approached an outcropping of rocks, the pain finally became too much to bear, and Clementine whimpered, clutching her arm, and almost falling to the ground as she stumbled. Jessie was immediately next to her, guiding her towards the rocks with one arm while the other barely held on to her pack.

Clementine slid down on the ground, laying back against the rock as she whimpered quietly. Trying and failing to hold back her tears, as her arm throbbed intensely.

Jessie dropped her backpack on the ground but remained standing. “Clementine, I know it hurts, and I know you need to rest. I do too! But we can’t stay here, okay? We have to keep moving.” As she spoke, she scanned the area around them, and a horrified expression grew on her face..

“Clementine, we have to go now! There’s creeps all over the place. If we don’t get moving right now, they’ll be all over us for sure!”

Clementine winced, but gamely pulled herself up to a standing position. “Okay, I-I can move. Let me jus-Urgh!” She groaned as her arm throbbed again and she stumbled from the pain. “I just need to-aahh!” Her cries were starting to attract nearby walkers. She had to move, sh-she just needed to…

She yelped in shock as Jessie grabbed on to her, slinging Clementine’s good arm over her shoulder to help prop her up. Jessie looked down at her pack, and her eyes widened as she seemed to realize something.

Clementine realized what the other girl was thinking. ‘ _ Oh god, she can’t help me and carry her backpack. She’s going to leave me behind!’  _ She had no illusions about what Jessie would pick. They had only just met, and it wasn’t exactly a pleasant meeting either. Those supplies would help the other girl a lot more than someone who couldn’t even walk.

To Clementine’s surprise, however, the other girl simply gripped her harder, and began pulling her forwards. “Come on Clem!” She panted, “We have to go  _ now! _ ”

Together, they stumbled away from the outcropping; Jessie gave one last regretful look at where her backpack was left laying in the ground, before she turned back, a look of determination on her face as she helped Clementine walk.

For long, desperate minutes, they shuffled together as they tried to escape the walkers that seemed to appear from behind every tree and every rock they passed. As much as Jessie tried to carry Clem’s weight, she was clearly tired herself. They wouldn’t be able to keep this up for very long...

For a brief moment, Clementine had hope that they would escape. Of course, nothing in Clementine’s life could ever be easy, and so as they shuffled forward, Jessie tripped over a root, sending them both to the ground in a heap.

Clementine moaned in pain as she landed on her wounded arm, while Jessie jumped up and readied her knife to face the approaching walkers, looking scared, but ready to fight for her life.

As the first walker approached, a spindly man dressed in a bloodied white shirt and torn, muddied jeans, Clementine’s luck took another turn as a crossbow bolt sprouted from the creature's eye.

As the two girls watched it collapse in shock, their attention was grabbed by a man on their right as he decapitated a walker with his machete, then sliced another’s head in half with a single swipe. This man, wearing an orange shirt and a pair of jeans, rushed up to them with a questioning look in his eyes.

“Are you girls okay!?” He said hurriedly. As he spoke, his eyes went to Clementine, who was still on the ground, watching him with worried but grateful eyes. “Oh shit, we need to get you guys out of here!”

Before she could question him on who he was or what he wanted, he scooped up Clementine in his arms, and beckoned for Jessie to follow him. Another man, nearly bald and wearing an olive green jacket with a pair of cargo pants. Appeared from the woods as he raised his crossbow to put a bolt in another approaching walker’s forehead.

“Alright, lets go!” This new man yelled at them. “I can’t afford to waste anymore bolts on these lurkers, so let’s get moving!” He turned and began to retreat from the approaching walkers.

Orange shirt made to follow him, making Clementine cry out slightly as she was jostled in his arms. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Jessie following close behind, and together they all escaped deeper into the words....


	2. A nonoptimal Solution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and Jessie meet some jumpy new "friends", with questionable medical techniques

**Jessie**

Adrenaline pumping through Jessie’s blood, the group rushed through the forest as they made their escape from the creeps chasing them. Just as her legs felt like they were about to fall off from overuse, the balding man who led the way came to a stop.

Hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath, the man spoke. “I… I think we’re safe now.” He said, panting slightly.

“You-you really think so?” Jessie asked, looking back at the way they had come from. She couldn’t see any creeps at the moment, but she knew from experience that no undead being in sight was far from a guarantee of safety.

He and the other man looked back and forth, scanning the area for any potential threats. Nodding in satisfaction, it was Orange Shirt who replied to her question. “Yeah... I think we’re good.”

He looked down at the girl in his arms. “Hey, are you alright?” He asked softly, concern evident in his tone.

Jessie could see Clementine start to squirm slightly as she struggled to answer. “I can-I can walk.” She stammered, trying and failing to hide her expression of pain as her arm throbbed.

“Is that right?” Orange Shirt responded humorously. “Because when I saw you back there, you couldn’t even stand, let alone walk.”

“She needs medical help.” Jessie insisted, frowning at Clementine’s stubbornness. Clementine shot her a look, annoyed that Jessie was contradicting her, but Jessie simply crossed her arms and stared right back, not budging on the issue. They started walking again as they continued talking.

“What are you two doing out here?” The balding man inquired, “It’s not safe for two kids to be out in the forest like this, all by themselves.”

“Were you separated from your group?” Orange Shirt added. “There’s no way a couple of kids like you could last out here by yourselves.”

Jessie bristled slightly at how he wrote her off as some helpless kid. Before she could open her mouth to tell him off, Clementine spoke up.”Everyone from my group is gone. I was all alone until I met Jessie here, about an hour ago I think? It’s hard to tell.”

Orange Shirt raised his eyebrows in concern. “Damn, I’m sorry to hear that. Must have been pretty rough.”

Green Jacket looked over to Jessie now. “So, you two just met then? What happened to your group, if you don’t mind me asking?” He asked, voice softening towards the end, as though preparing for another sob story.

Jessie played with the hem of her hoodie and stared down at her feet, reluctant to speak about her past. “I’ve been on my own for a while now. I really don’t want to talk about it.”  _ ‘Hopefully he’ll leave it at that. I don’t like thinking about… before, at all. I definitely don’t want to talk about it with a couple of strangers.’  _

Thankfully, Green Jacket just nodded. “I just lost a sister not too long ago. Trust me, I know what it’s like to lose people you care about.” He said, looking down at Jessie with understanding eyes.

Jessie sighed and looked ahead to check that the way forward was clear of creeps, half-paying attention as the two men introduced themselves.

‘I’m Luke, and this is Pete.”

Jessie nodded as Clementine reciprocated with her own name, glad to have actual names for Orange Shirt and Green Jacket respectively. She was startled out of her thoughts as Luke asked for her name. “Oh, uh, my name’s Jessie.”

Luke smiled. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you Clementine and Jessie. We’re taking you two back to our group for now, okay? We have a doctor with us, he should be able to help yo-OH SHIT!” he yelled suddenly, dropping Clementine on the ground with a hard thud. The group came to a halt, Jessie looking around for any creeps that might’ve heard him shout before turning back to the situation in front of her.

Clementine groaned from her place in the dirt as Luke started to panic. “She’s… she’s been bit man! Fuck, oh fuck… fuck! Oh man, what are we gonna do!?”

“No!” Clementine shouted, trying to get his attention. “It was a dog!”

“I didn’t see any dog Clementine.” Pete admonished, skepticism clear in his voice.

‘I was there! She got attacked by a dog!” Jessie insisted.  _ ‘Damn it! I should’ve known this would happen. How many people get attacked by dogs compared to creeps these days!’ _

Luke wasn’t having it. “Come on! We saw you guys with those lurkers back there!”

Clementine looked at Pete and Luke with desperation in her eyes. “We’re telling the truth, I swear!”

Pete frowned. “Swearing doesn’t make something so Clementine.”

“Come on!” Jessie groaned. “I barely even know this girl. Why would I lie for her!?”

Pete looked deep in thought for a moment. “Hmm, alright.” He said, walking up to Clem and kneeling down next to her. “Let's take a look at it.”

“Woah, Woah, watch yourself!” Luke shook his head as Clementine glared at him. “Hey, don’t look at me like that! You’re the one who’s bitten here!”

Jessie sighed, frustrated. “I already told you; she’s not bitten!”

Pete ignored them as he rolled up Clementine’s sleeve. They all winced at the horrible sound it made as it brushed over the bite on her arm, and Pete studied the wound carefully.

Luke looked over the other man's shoulder.“Is… is it like they said?” He asked nervously.

Pete hummed thoughtfully. “Well… it could’ve been a dog. It’s hard to say.” He looked over at Jessie, and then back to Clementine. “So where did this “dog” go?”

Jessie spoke up then. “I killed it.” She said matter-of-factly.

Luke sputtered at that. “What!? A dog shows up and bites someone, an-and you just kill it?!”

“It  _ attacked _ her! What was I supposed to do?” Jessie asked, annoyed.  _ ‘Did this guy expect her to just let the damn mutt maul them both to death!?’ _

Clementine was more emotional in her appeal. “It got hurt, really bad! We had to put it out of its misery!”

“What would you have done?” Pete asked him firmly, a bit more understanding of the girl's situation.

“It's just, uh, you don’t… you don’t kill dogs.” Luke explained, still upset at the thought.

Jessie huffed at that. “Well, maybe you’d feel different if you saw one try to maul somebody to death in front of you!”

Pete just sighed and looked at Clementine’s face. “Clementine?”

“Yes?”

“Are you telling me the truth? Look me in the eyes when you answer.”

Clementine looked him dead in the eyes. “Yes.” She said firmly.

Pete nodded. “Alright then Clementine, that’s good enough for me.”

Luke wasn’t so accepting. “Well what else was she gonna say!?” He asked quickly, clearly not believing their story.

Jessie glared up at him, ready to retort. As she opened her mouth to respond however, Pete replied first with a hint of a smile. “I’ve got a good bullshit detector Luke. That’s why you can never beat me in poker.”

Luke sputtered and tried to argue Pete’s point for a moment, but quickly conceded. Jessie watched them carefully. Any other time that exchange might have been a bit amusing, but right now, she was too worried about what would happen next to chuckle.

Pete stood up and pierced Luke with an authoritative stare. “I don’t know about you, but I ain’t willing to leave a couple of little girls to die out in the woods when we have a doctor that can make the call. We can have Carlos take a look at it before we go making rash decisions.”

Luke sighed. “Nick ain’t gonna like this; not after what happened to-”

“You don’t have to remind me about that boy.” Pete interrupted, a hard look in his eyes.

Luke avoided eye contact, looking towards the ground. “Right, sorry sir.”

Jessie watched their interaction intently.  _ ‘So, it looks like Pete’s the leader of whatever group they have out here. I hope the rest of them aren’t as jumpy as Luke, or that at least Pete has his people under control.’ _

Pete patted Luke’s shoulder, twice, and then motioned for them all to continue walking. Jessie offered Clementine her arm again, but the other girl brushed her off. “I told you, I can… I can walk.”

Jessie simply huffed at the other girls stubbornness and let Clementine walk on her own.  _ ‘Why do I even bother sometimes?’ _

As they approached what appeared to be a fairly large cabin as far as Jessie could see, she couldn’t help notice that Clementine was lagging behind, still clutching her arm. Before she could voice her concern, Pete spoke up. “Clementine, you feeling alright?”

“I’m… I’m fine.” She said, speaking slowly. “Just… tired.”

“Well you better be fine, cause I’m not carrying you anymore with that bite on your arm.” Luke said.

Jessie glared at him, thoroughly fed up with him at this point. “Why are you such an asshole!?”  _ ‘Even if Clementine was bitten, she wouldn’t turn that fast. This guy’s just being a dick about it for no reason!’ _

Luke stuttered in shock at the unexpected language from the little girl. “He-hey! I just don’t want to get bit okay!?”

Before Jessie could retort, she heard Clementine mutter something behind her. She turned just in time to see Clementine topple and fall to the ground with a wince-worthy thud.  _ ‘Shit.’ _

**Clementine**

Clementine wouldn’t be able to say how long she was out for after everything went black. What she could say, was that she felt absolutely horrible when she finally drifted back into consciousness.

Her body ached all over, her arm throbbed steadily, sending pain shooting through her body with every pulse, and she felt lightheaded. She couldn’t even bring herself to open her eyes.

Slowly, as she tried to focus, voices began to penetrate the fog surrounding her mind. Softly at first, and then growing louder and louder as the fog cleared. She could hear multiple voices, most of them unfamiliar to her.

She could hear Pete, explaining what she had told him about the dog. There were other voices, male and female. They were angry sounding, and louder than Pete had been. Finally, she heard a higher-pitched voice hollering away.  _ ‘Jessie.’  _ She was still surprised the other girl had stuck up for her so vehemently back in the woods. ‘ _ Looks like she’s still arguing my case.’  _ She thought to herself, grateful, even if she didn’t quite understand the girl’s motives.

Finally, she managed to force her eyes open. At once the light was blinding to her sore eyes, and she had to force herself to keep them open even as tears gathered in the corners. She could see that she was surrounded by people now. Pete in his green jacket, a large, dark-skinned man wearing glasses, a pregnant woman, and a man in a truckers hat, holding a rifle pointed down towards her prone body. She couldn’t see Jessie in her line of sight, but the other girl was loud enough that Clementine was assured that she was close.

Finally, she found her voice. “I… I need a doct-” her words were cut off by the loud CRACK of a rifle being discharged. For a moment, she thought she was dead, her ears ringing from the point-blank discharge as she breathed rapidly in terror. Slowly, her breathing returned to normal as she felt over her body and realized the shot had missed her.

  
  


Pete grabbed the rifle from its wielder, speaking harshly as he did so. “Keep your finger off the trigger boy!”

Clementine heard a door crash open, and Luke’s voice could clearly be heard as he rushed outside to see what had happened, though she couldn’t see the door or where Luke was from her position on the ground. As Luke came down the steps, the pregnant woman turned and laid into the trigger happy man.

“You idiot! Every lurker for five miles probably heard that shot!”

Not to be cowed, he fired back defensively. “Hey! You’re the one telling me to fucking shoot her!”  _ ‘They… They wanted to shoot me? Good thing I woke up when I did…’ _

Jessie, not to be left out, added her two cents to the conversation. “Are you insane!? You could have fucking killed her!”

The man turned to look down at her. “You watch your fucking mouth! Hell, even if I did, it would be a mercy at this point anyway!”

Jessie bared her teeth, ready to argue some more, when the large man with the glasses stepped in. “Everybody just calm down for a second!” He implored, his hands raised in front of him.

By now Clementine had managed to stand up as Luke rushed over to check on her. “Clementine, you okay?” He asked, looking concerned. ‘ _ Funny, he didn’t seem to care all that much in the woods.’  _

Nevertheless, she continued the words that she had tried to speak before she was so shockingly interrupted. “I need… I just need a doctor, okay?”

Luke nodded. “We have a doctor right here okay? We’ll get him to take a look.” He turned to look at the rest of the group. “What the hell is wrong with you people?! Okay, she’s just scared!”  _ ‘Where was this when we were out in the woods?’  _ Clementine wondered, though she knew better than to say anything.

The pregnant lady wasn’t having it though. “We’re all scared Luke! Don’t act like we’re the crazy ones because we don’t believe this bullshit story about a dog in the woods!”

Trucker Hat backed her up. “No way they’ve survived out here on their own! Why are we even arguing about this!?” He said, turning to address the whole group.

The shouting came to a halt as an hispanic man wearing a flannel shirt came down the steps. “Let me take a look.” He said authoritatively as the others parted before him like Moses parting the red sea.

He marched right up to Clementine, leaving her feeling somewhat intimidated as he towered over her. Without a word, he held out his hand.

Confused and somewhat nervous, Clementine looked around her a moment, until her eyes settled on Luke, standing just behind this new stranger. He looked back at her encouragingly. “It’s okay. Go ahead. He’s a doctor.”

Still nervous, Clementine slowly pulled back the sleeve of her left arm. The sound it made as it brushed over her wound left everyone around her cringing slightly, and she grit her teeth at the sensation. One of them, the large man with the glasses, felt a need to comment as he laid eyes on the injury. “Damn, that must’ve hurt…” Despite her pain, Clementine had to fight to keep herself from rolling her eyes. ‘ _ Oh, you think so?’  _ She thought sardonically.

Despite the pain and her nerves, Clementine held up her injured arm, presenting it to the man who must have been the doctor she and Jessie had been told about. Again, without saying a word, he knelt down to inspect the wound, touching it with perhaps less gentleness than Clementine would have liked. She winced slightly as he looked over the bite intently.

At long last he spoke. “Hmm. Whatever it was, it got you good.”

Watching from the sidelines, Jessie snorted derisively at his words. “Yeah. Pretty sure I could have told you that.” Though Clementine made no comment, she couldn’t help but agree with the other girl.  _ ‘Like I need a doctor to tell me that my arm is messed up. Pretty sure I could figure that out on my own.’ _

Trucker Hat shook his head, clearly aggravated. “This isn’t how we do things man. When you’re bit, you get put down. End of story! I’m not going through this again!”

Luke tried to reason with him. “Hey man, no ones suggesting that.”

“It was a dog bite you idiot!” There went Jessie “helping” the situation.

Before Nick could spit back at her, Pete chimed in with his own suggestion. “We could just take her arm off.” Everyone stared at him. Clementine cringed back in fear.

Pete continued, unaffected by everyone’s stares. “I know that worked for a cousin down in Ainsworth. Maybe it’ll work here.”

After a moment of shock, Jessie found her voice. “Why… Why the hell would you do something like that?!” She asked, horrified. Evidently she had never seen someone try that before, Clementine noted.

“I told you.” Pete explained. “I had a cousin who got bit by a lurker. He cut his arm off real quick, and he managed to survive the bite.”

While Jessie processed this information, the rest of the group started to debate Pete’s idea. Horrified, and not wanting to lose her arm, Clementine looked around for someone to appeal to. Preferably somewhat sympathetic to her plight.

After a moment of deliberation, she turned to Pete, the one who had been on her side since they were in the forest. She stared at him, and, sensing that he was being watched, he turned to her as she spoke. “You-you don’t wanna do something you’ll regret right? Don’t you want to be sure first?”

Pete looked at her for a moment, then turned to the others. “Come on, she weighs about as much as a sack of flour. I’m pretty sure we could take her if it comes to that.”

Before any of them could respond, Clementine heard the cabin door crack open. Looking up, she saw an hispanic girl wearing red glasses peeking through the doorway, clearly a few years older than Clementine or Jessie.

This new girl surveyed the situation, and came to focus her curious eyes first on Jessie and then Clementine. “Who’re they?” She asked, eyes widening as she saw the blood spattered on Clementine’s face, and the bite on her arm,

The doctor stood and turned quickly to the girl leaning out of the doorway. “Sarah? What did I say? Stay inside.” He said sternly. With an expression of disappointment, the girl, now identified as Sarah, closed the door, disappearing back into the cabin.  _ ‘That must be his daughter.’  _ Clementine reasoned.  _ ‘Or at least a relative.’ _

Satisfied that Sarah was back inside, the doctor turned back to Clementine again, kneeling down to continue his inspection. Seeing an opportunity to plead her case, Clementine tried speaking to him. “I just need help… with my arm, and then I’ll leave, okay? I don’t mean to be any trouble.”

Jessie backed her up. “Yeah. She just needs to stop the bleeding, and disinfect the wound alright? You’ll never have to see either of us ever again.”

The doctor looked up at Clementine skeptically. “And where would you two go, hmm?” he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

After a moment of thought, Clementine answered. “I-I’d go find my friend Christa!” Even as she said it, a part of her brain she didn’t want to acknowledge reminded her about that gunshot she’d heard while running from the bandits.  _ ‘No! There’s no way she’s dead! She can’t be! I… I can’t be alone again…’ _

Trucker Hat clearly didn’t think much of her plan. “Forget it! You two wouldn’t last a minute out there!”

Jessie bristled at his words. “Maybe your head is too empty to remember anything, but I already told you guys! I can’t speak for Clementine, but I’ve been on my own for awhile now. I could probably survive out there better than any one of you!”

The pregnant woman stepped closer to the brunette, the skin of her face tightening in anger. “And I’ve already told  _ you  _ that I don’t believe your bullshit story about living on your own in the woods. You’d better learn to show some fucking respect for your elders, or I’ll make you learn!”

Jessie didn’t appear all that intimidated, at least on the outside. “Oh, I’m so fucking scared! What are ya gonna do, sit on me!?

The angry woman howled in rage at the young girl’s words, but before she could say anything else back, Luke stepped in, clearly eager to calm things down. “Everyone just settle down a bit okay? I know it’s a tense situation right now, but we need to keep cool. I've been thinking… and my gut tells me they’re telling the truth. It probably is just a dog bite… probably.”

Before anyone else could say anything, the doctor finished his inspection, standing up and turning around to face the group.

“So, what do d’you think?” The man with the glasses asked.

“Was it a lurker?” Trucker Hat asked, clearly eager to get this over with.

Clementine’s heart sank at his words. “A bite like that… Could be anything. Only one way to find out.” 

“How?” Pete asked. 

“We wait.” The doctor continued. “By tomorrow morning, if the fever’s set in, we’ll know if she’s gonna turn. In the meantime… We can lock her in the shed.”

Clementine couldn’t hide her shock at the suggestion. “W-what about my arm? I-it needs to get cleaned, a-and stitched, and bandaged…”

Jessie clearly was just as shocked by the suggestion as Clementine. “Are you completely insane!? If you leave that bite without cleaning it, it’ll get infected and then she’ll have a fever anyways! What kind of doctor are you!?”

Luke seemed to agree with at least the sentiment of her words. “The girl is in bad shape Carlos…”

Mr. Glasses was next to speak up, in a good-natured tone. “We have all of that stuff in the cabin. We could probably get by with-.” 

“Alvin please.” The pregnant lady interrupted, narrowing her eyes at him. 

Backtracking, Alvin finished speaking. “But uh, yeah, We can’t do nothing.” He said quickly, clearly eager to appease the woman who Clementine could only assume was his wife.

Carlos was firm though. “I’m not wasting supplies on a lurker bite. If it turns out you’re telling the truth, I’ll clean it and stitch it in the morning.”

Before either Clementine or Jessie could argue about it any further, Carlos turned and marched away. Without a word, he climbed the steps of the cabin, and opened the door. Before he disappeared inside, he turned back to the group to say. “The other one can come inside... At least for now. Until we figure out what to do with her.” And with that, he was gone.

Clementine whimpered softly as her arm throbbed, harder than before. Luke looked at her, pity easy to see in his eyes. “I’m sorry. I think that’s the best we’re gonna get.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Clementine saw Trucker Hat stomp over to Pete to take his rifle back.. Pete held it out for him with a stern warning on his lips. “Finger off the trigger son.”

Trucker Hat grabbed it back angrily. “I ain’t your son.” He spit out.

“Don’t be like that, man.” Luke intervened, a disapproving look on his face.

“It’s alright.” Pete said, eyes firmly on Trucker Hat. “Boy’s got his mom's temper.”

Trucker Hat ignored him and looked at Clementine with unsympathetic eyes. “Come on.” He ordered, gesturing towards a rickety old shed. Unable to think of any other solution that wouldn’t be a death sentence for her, Clementine had no choice but to start walking.

She marched towards the shed, with Luke leading the way and Trucker Hat right behind her. She felt like a prisoner being led to a cell. Looking up at Luke, she insisted one final time. “It was just a dog… You’ll see.” 

Luke looked back down at her, clearly upset with this plan, but not willing to go against the group. “I guess we will.” He said sadly.

Out of the corner of her eye, Clementine saw Jessie run to catch up with them, just in time to catch what they’d said. She stared at Clem in disbelief. “You can’t seriously be going along with this!? You’ll die in that shed if you don’t get some help!”

Clementine simply stared at her, mentally exhausted from all the arguing she had already engaged in. “And what else can we do, Jessie? If I go back out into the woods, I’ll die. They have the things we need to fix it, and this is the only way we’ll get those things. So please… Just stop.”

Jessie just crossed her arms and hung her head. “All the medicine and bandages in the world won’t help you if you’re dead.” She murmured. They were both silent as they came to a stop in front of the shed that was to be her prison.

Luke opened the door, shining light on her new temporary home. Looking at the desolate state of the place, Clementine cringed at the idea of having to spend the night there. She turned her head slightly, only for Trucker Hat to gesture her forwards with his rifle, clearly eager to get her locked away.

As Clementine stepped forwards, Jessie made to follow her, when Luke put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. Her head shot up to glare at him, and he hastened to explain himself. “Did you not hear Carlos? You’ll be with us in the cabin, where it’s safe.”

Jessie gave a sarcastic bark of laughter at that. “So one kid gets thrown in the shed, while the other gets to come inside the nice warm cabin? You trying to act like you’re not a bunch of assholes or something?” Clementine sighed internally. ‘ _ It’s already been decided. I appreciate what she’s trying to do, but it’s clearly pointless.’ _

Luke shook his head, clearly trying to remain patient with her. “Look, your situation… It’s different from Clementine’s.” Jessie snorted at that. “The only difference is that she’s injured and I’m completely fine! If anything, you’d think that any decent person would want her in the cabin where she’ll be safe and warm.”

Luked sighed, clearly just as tired of this argument as Clementine herself was. “You know we can’t do that Jess. We have to think about the safety of the group.”

Jessie scoffed. “Right, because you guys clearly aren’t competent enough to handle her! And don’t call me-” She stopped suddenly as Clementine coughed loudly in order to get her attention.

Clementine looked at her, eyes half-lidded. “Jessie… Just stop. I know you’re trying to help, but they’ve clearly made up their minds. I’m sick, and tired of arguing without getting anywhere. Just go with them, okay?”  _ ‘Jessie needs to stop. She may mean well, but all of this is giving me a headache. Heh, she kinda reminds me of Kenny, with how combative her personality is. I don’t know how they’d react if they’d had a chance to meet each other. They’d probably attract a whole herd with their yelling.’ _

Jessie stared at her for a few moments, the glower on her face not quite managing to hide the concern in her eyes. At long last, she breathed out heavily, and took a step back from the shed, acquiescing to the other girls request.

Luke nodded at Clementine, relief clear on his face that she had averted another argument for him to deal with. She stepped into the shed, turning to look at the three standing at the door as Luke began to shut the heavy doors. Slowly, the darkness enveloped the room, until the door shut completely, and Clementine was completely cloaked in it. From inside the shed, Clementine could hear another argument begin as Luke revealed that Jessie would have to give up her knife while in the cabin, but she didn’t focus on that as the voices grew fainter and fainter.

Instead, she chose to survey her surroundings. The shed was dusty, and almost completely empty, aside from a tackle box in the corner, a rake, and a barrel with some wood planks sticking out of it. As she looked around, she clutched her arm and winced as it throbbed in agony. ‘ _ Maybe Jessie was right about me not lasting the night, but what can I do?’  _

As she tried to think of her options, she remembered what Alvin had said about having supplies in the garden. Like she had told Jessie in the forest, she preferred to avoid stealing when she could. In this case however, it seemed to be a matter of life or death. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she had one final thought. ‘ _ So. How do I get out of here.’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, here we go with chapter two. This would have been out yesterday, but it was so hot that I didn't really feel like being productive for most of the day. A lot of the dialogue in this chapter is just ripped straight from the game, with a few changes here and there. I promise that the dialogue will diverge more as we get further into the story. The next chapter should definitely have a good bit of my own words in it. Expect that in a few days time.


	3. Creeping in the Cabin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine searches for the supplies she needs to fix her arm, and makes a few 'friends' along the way.

**Clementine**

Her grand escape from the shed went  _ mostly  _ smoothly. A quick search revealed not much of use, besides some fishing wire in an old tackle box that she could use for stitching if she got desperate enough, and a hammer, located atop a high shelf on the left wall of the shed. It also revealed a crudely patched corner, that she could probably break through once she had the hammer. 

Clementine thought about using the knife she had gotten from that walker at the campsite to break through, but figured that it was flimsy enough she’d be better off waiting until she had her hands on that hammer. Honestly, thinking about it. Clementine was surprised she still had the knife at all. ‘ _ I guess they must be pretty new at the whole imprisoning people thing. Or maybe they’re just not very competent.’  _

Retrieving the fishing wire was as simple as opening the tackle box and plucking it, to be stored safely in her jean pocket until it was needed. Getting a hold of the hammer on the other hand, was a bit more of a challenge. Specifically, it involved carefully climbing atop a fold-out table and clinging to the shelf as she reached for the hammer, as well as a rather embarrassing fall as the shelf collapsed under her weight. As she laid, groaning, on the dusty old floor, Clementine vowed to herself that if she survived this night, and for whatever reason decided to tell this story someday; she would leave this part out of it.

Hammer now firmly in hand, Clementine knelt down to deal with the board and plywood blocking her off from the outside world. Looking at the corner more closely, she was shocked by just how flimsy it was. Anyone or anything with any level of determination could probably break through it if they wanted.

For a moment, Clementine wondered if it had been done by someone else, or by the cabin’s current occupants. Between locking her in the shed and their failure to to search her for weapons, it was clear that her captors weren’t the best at critical thinking.

Shaking her head to clear her mind and focus, Clementine set herself to prying the board off. Setting the claw-end of the hammer between the board and the wall, Clementine pulled, and with a bit of effort, the board clattered to the ground at her feet. After that, it only took a few good kicks to knock the plywood out of place, and Clementine was free.

Crawling through the gap she had made on her belly, Clementine pushed herself up, wincing as pain shot up her left arm, and crouched slightly to keep a low profile as she made her may towards the cabin. Scanning the area around her, Clementine gasped slightly as she saw a walker roaming at the edge of the forest, very close to the cabin. With all the lights on in the cabin, it was a miracle it hadn’t been drawn closer.

Moving a bit faster to avoid being spotted by the walking corpse, Clementine tiptoed up the steps to the deck, trying her best to avoid making noise. As she looked for a way in, she couldn’t help but be drawn towards a window where she could hear Alvin and his wife arguing. Evidently, the woman wasn’t too pleased that he had wanted to help her out before. At least Clementine now had somewhat of a name for said woman. “Bec.” Probably short for something, but at least she didn’t have to keep calling her “the pregnant woman” in her mind.

Bec threw her hands up, announced, “I need some air.” And left the room. Seeing an opportunity to speak with someone sympathetic to her cause, she leaned over so that she was in full view, and tapped on the glass with her knuckles, waiting for Alvin to take notice.

It didn’t take long. When Alvin laid eyes on her, he did a double-take, and quickly shuffled over, opening the window. He didn’t exactly seem happy to see her. “What the hell are you doing!?” He whisper-shouted, clearly not wanting the rest of his group to hear.

Clementine thought carefully about what she wanted to say. After a moment, she opened her mouth to speak. “I… I need your help.” She whimpered, making sure to slouch and in general try to look as harmless and pitiful as possible. She didn’t like the idea of manipulating people into helping her, but at the moment, she needed to worry about survival.  _ ‘I mean, is it really manipulation if I really am pitiful right now?’  _ She didn’t bother to answer her own question, not sure if she would like the answer.

“You can’t be here! If the others find out, we’re both gonna be in  _ big  _ trouble.” Alvin whispered, clearly struggling to not raise his voice loud enough for the others to hear.

“I  _ need  _ to fix my arm! I’ll die if I don’t!” Clementine warbled, doing her best to sound as desperate as possible. Not that she really needed to try that hard, considering her situation.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me! Even if you weren’t bitten by some lurker - which you probably  _ were _ . I can’t just go giving you our stuff without the group's permission.” Alvin turned to look over his shoulder, as though they would all come running just by him mentioning them. “You gotta get outta here before someone comes in. Carlos will take a look at you in the morning, now get out of here.”

_ ‘Damn it! What else can I do to convince him to help!?’  _ After a moment of intense thought, she decided to try something else. Putting on her best puppy dog eyes, Clementine looked straight at Alvin and told him. “I can tell that you’re nice…”

Alvin narrowed his eyes in a way that he probably thought made him look intimidating, but to Clementine it just made him look like he needed new glasses. “I ain’t nice.” He said, in a way that made it clear he was trying to convince himself more so than Clementine.

Clementine smirked.  _ ‘Gotcha.’  _ “Yes, you are.” She crooned, encouragingly.

Alvin’s mouth hung open as he realized what was going on. “Don’t you do that. I see what you’re trying to do!” He closed it again as he “glared” at her again. “I’m serious. You need to get out of here  _ now _ .”

Clementine looked right at him, her tone pleading. “I heard what you said when everyone was arguing. You wanted to help!”  _ ‘Come on. You know you want to help me.’  _ She willed mentally.

Alvin avoided eye contact for a moment. “You didn’t see anything.” He said unconvincingly. He turned to look over his shoulder again, before looking back at Clementine. “Look, you need to get out of here before my wife finds you! I’m serious, you gotta go. I got enough problems already. There’s a baby on the way, Rebecca’s all emotional, got a mess of hormones causing all sorts of trouble. I don't think I can handle anything else right now, got it?”

Clementine looked down for a moment, then back at Alvin with her sad eyes operating at full force. “I don’t want to get you in trouble.” She really didn’t. Unlike some of the others in his group. Alvin actually seemed like a nice guy, if under a lot of stress.  _ ‘Still, I really need his help. Come on… Just a little more.’ _

Alvin sighed. “I’m already in trouble just talking to you.” He said, clearly exasperated with the whole situation.  _ ‘Well I’m not exactly having fun here either, Alvin.’ _

Clementine could see how conflicted he was. All he needed was a bit more pushing… “No one else will help me.” She said, hoping that Alvin would feel at least some guilt for the way his people had treated her

After a second that felt agonizingly long to Clementine, Alvin finally relented. “I’m screwed if anyone finds out about this. You understand?” He asked, clearly not thrilled by what he was about to do.

Clementine let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. “Yes.” She said, smiling, barely remembering to keep her voice down as she realized that Alvin was finally going to help her!

“What do you need?” He asked, knocking her out of his reverie.  _ ‘Oh, right. What exactly do I need again?’ _

“The b... The cut on my arm needs to be cleaned, and stitched.” She explained. Christa had taught her a little about first aid before she… Before they got seperated.

Alvin recoiled slightly at that. “Stitched? I ain’t doing that.” He said quickly, clearly squeamish at the thought.

She couldn’t hide the look of annoyance on her face. “I’ll figure it out on my own.” She said, somewhat sourly.  _ ‘I shouldn’t be like that. He’s already risking a lot for me.’ _ She thought to herself. ‘ _ You mean helping a kid not die in a shed that his group locked her in. Yeah, he’s really going above and beyond.’  _ Her more sassy side chimed in. She ignored it. Now wasn’t the time to let resentment cloud her focus.

Before she could continue talking to herself like a lunatic, she was broken out of her thoughts by Alvin speaking again. “All right, look… “I don’t know what I can find. We’re short on bandages, but I might be able to find something clean that would work.”

Clementine nodded. “I need something to clean it out with, and a needle and thread would help too!”  _ ‘Maybe this’ll be easier than I thought. Maybe I won’t even have to technically steal anything! It’s not stealing if they just give it to you, right?’ _

Her hopes were dashed when Alvin opened his mouth again, squinting in thought. “I don’t even know where to look. Carlos has the medical supplies on lockdown, and we don’t got much these days.”  _ ‘Damn it. Of course it can’t be that easy.’ _

Trying not to let her disappointment show, Clementine nodded. “Well, anything you could get would be nice. I’ll just have to find the rest on my own.”

Alvin pulled back from the window, whispering “wait here” as he left the room to go look for something she could use. For long, agonizing moments, Clementine waited there on the deck, keeping an eye out for walkers. She was very exposed out here, and she was very eager to get what she needed so she could get back to the shed. It wasn’t perfect, but it had to be safer than out here.  _ ‘I wonder what Jessie is doing right now?’  _ She thought to herself. Was she being interrogated by the other group members, or had they just locked her away somewhere for the night? The mental image of Jessie, locked in a closet, hollering and cursing up a storm brought a smile to her lips, and she couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought.

Finally, Clementine was broken out of her thoughts as she heard a door open. For a moment she ducked down, heart racing, worried that someone would find her standing on the deck, but it was just Alvin. He walked over to the window and bent over slightly to put his hand through. “I found you some bandages.” He said, depositing what appeared to be a rolled up strip of torn cloth.  _ ‘Better than nothing I guess.’ _

Surprisingly, that wasn’t all he had for her. “And I, uh.. I got you a juice box. In case you’re thirsty.” She took it in her hand and inspected the label.  _ ‘Apple. My favorite’ _

She smiled softly at Alvin, “Thank you.” She said sincerely. For a moment, she pondered asking where Jessie was, but before she could voice her question, the familiar voice of Carlos, the man who had ordered her put in the shed in the first place could be heard through the door. “Alvin, house meeting in five minutes.”

Alvin turned his head to the door. “Okay, thanks!” He called out. He turned back to the window and gave her a stern look. “Now, you need to go!” And with that, he closed the window and ambled over to the door, disappearing further into the cabin. Pocketing the bandages and juice box, Clementine contemplated her next move.

After a moment of thought, she decided to head back down to ground level and circle the cabin to look for a way in that wouldn’t get her immediately caught. After making almost a full circle around, Clementine noticed a piece of plywood that had been used to patch a hole on the lattice work under the deck.

Holding up her hammer again, Clementine made quick work of prying out the nails and clearing the way to get under the deck. Crawling through the small hole she had uncovered, just big enough for her small frame to fit through, she pushed herself up so that she was crouching as she looked for a way into the cabin.

Finally, she came across what appeared to be a trapdoor leading up into the cabin. Trying to push in open yielded no results, and her hammer proved too big to be able to find purchase in the latch. Finally, she was forced to give her knife a try. Working carefully, she slid the blade of the knife in between the floor and the trapdoor, and, pushing hard, the hatch popped open. Unfortunately, this proved to be too much for the flimsy blade, which snapped off of the handle and clattered to the ground.  _ ‘Damn it. Hopefully I won’t need that later…’ _

Pokering her head up through the trapdoor, Clementine was relieved to see that no one was there to catch her. Trying to stay quiet, she pulled herself up, biting the inside of her cheek as her injured arm burned in protest. Looking around, she found herself to be in some sort of storage closest, although it seemed completely empty at the moment. There was one door directly in front of her.

Pressing her ear up against the wall. She could hear talking, Pete and Carlos, although thankfully it didn’t seem to be coming from the next room. Carefully, she turned the knob and pushed it open slowly, conscious that any strange noise would likely bring people running to investigate.

Poking her head through, she found herself looking into what appeared to be the living room, with two couches centered around a coffee table, upon which candles burned brightly. The couches had blankets strewn across them. Evidently there weren’t enough beds in the cabin for everybody to have one. There was a stove against one wall, and the walls were covered in paintings and other decorations.  _ ‘Looks cozy.’ _

Directly to her right, there was another door, adjacent to the one she had just come from. Voices could be clearly heard on the other side. Among them was Jessie. As far as Clementine could tell, she had been correct in her guess that she was being interrogated.

Well, she wasn’t being tortured or anything, from what she could hear. They were just asking her questions. “Where is your group?” “How long have you known that other girl?” “Why are you being so difficult?” That last one was a bit more aggressive than the others. Obviously they didn’t believe what Jessie had to say about being alone in the woods. 

Jessie wasn’t doing herself any favours with her combative responses. “I already fucking told you! I was on my own, and I just met that girl today! How is that so hard for you people to understand!?”

Clementine would have loved to stay there and listen to the other girl tear into the adults with her words, but she had already pushed her luck by staying for so long. She looked around, and decided to make her way towards the stairs to the right of the kitchen.

Creeping up the stairs, Clementine cringed at every creak and groan the old wood steps made under her feet as she ascended. With every step, she half-expected someone to burst out of the kitchen in search of intruders. Finally, she reached the stop, and looking to her right, she saw two doors on opposite sides of the hallway. Maybe one of them would be where the supplies were?

Deciding to start with the door on the left, she slowly turned the knob and pushed it open, revealing a simple bathroom, with a shower toilet, and sink. Looking at the sink, she saw a mirror on the wall above it. On closer inspection, it appears to be the kind that hid a cabinet behind it, for storage purposes.  _ ‘There’s gotta be something in there.’ _

Tiptoeing over, she opened the cabinet carefully, her nose crumpling in worry at the whine of the hinges. Inspecting the inside of it, she noticed a needle stuck in what looked to her like a tomato. She didn’t know that name, but that was important right now. Gingerly, she tucked the needle into her pocket, careful not to poke herself with it.

After a brief search revealed nothing else of use at the moment, she closed the cabinet, and made her way back to the door. As she touched the handle though, she heard a sound that set her heart racing. Footsteps. And a voice, Rebecca’s voice, coming this way! 

Trying not to panic, Clementine scanned the bathroom for a place to hide, her eyes quickly settling on the shower. The curtain seemed opaque enough to hide her form for from. Quickly, she parted the curtain and climbed into the tub, making sure to draw it back together behind her.

From her hiding spot, she listened as the door opened, and Rebecca came in hurriedly. Peeking through the space in the curtain, Clementine watched and listened as the woman worried about her baby, leaning over the sink to splash water on her face. What she heard next made her eyes widen in surprise.

“Let it be okay… And… And let it be his.” The pregnant woman whispered frettingly, a look of disquiet on her face as she stared at herself in the mirror.

Clementine was shocked.  _ ‘Her baby might not even be Alvin’s? Then whose is it? Pete’s? Luke’s? Whoever it is, it’ll definitely cause some drama in their group if it ever comes out.’ _

She was so distracted that she didn’t even realize Rebecca was leaving until she heard the door close, startling her with the thump of it. Waiting a few seconds to make sure the woman was really gone, Clementine gingerly pulled back the curtains and stepped out of the tub, ready to continue her search for supplies. She only needed one thing now: Something to clean the dog bite with before she sewed it up.

She opened the door at an agonizingly slow pace, fully aware that Rebecca could still be nearby. After a moment or two of waiting, she stepped through the door, closing it carefully behind her.  _ ‘Alright. Let’s try that other door now.’ _

Quietly, she put her hand on the knob of the door opposite to where she had just come from, turning it slowly, and cracking it open to peer inside. Her heart stopped as she pulled back in shock. Sarah, sitting on her bed and facing the door, gasped in shock, staring at the younger girl with wide eyes behind her glasses.  _ ‘Oh shit!” _

Unable to think of anything else to do, Clementine put her finger to her lips, indicating for the other girl to remain quiet. Her mind was racing as she waited for Sarah to cry out in fear, alerting everyone in the cabin and ruining her chance to save herself.

To her surprise however, the bespectacled girl kept her voice at a whisper as she spoke. “You’re not supposed to be in here.” She said anxiously. Clementine couldn’t blame her for her tone. She would have been pretty nervous if she witnessed a stranger trying to enter her room, apocalypse or not.

Clementine sighed internally.  _ ‘My cover is already blown. I might as well see if she’ll help me.’  _ Putting on a friendly smile, she crept further into the room, closing the door behind her as she spoke. “Hi.” She greeted, unable to keep the tremor out of her voice. “Can you please help me?”

Sarah stared at her, clearly unnerved by her presence. “I-I’m not supposed to talk to you.” She said hurriedly. “My dad can’t know.”  _ ‘So, Carlos is her dad then. Good to know.’ _

Clementine looked around, desperate for anything to make this less tense. Finally, her eyes settled on the book resting open on Sarah’s pillow. “Wha… What are you reading?” She asked, somewhat awkward. It had been a while since she’d interacted with someone close to her age. Properly, that is. She didn’t count fighting and bickering with Jessie in the woods. Of course, this wasn’t exactly a normal situation either, but she’d take what she could get.

Sarah’s eyes glanced over at the book, then shot back to Clementine, like she would pounce if the other girl didn’t keep her eyes on her. “A book.” She said simply. 

Clementine rolled her eyes internally, but pressed onwards. “What book? I like books.”  _ ‘Ugh, did I really just say that. God, what is wrong with me?’  _ It wasn’t a lie. She had enjoyed reading occasionally. Before everything happened that is. She honestly couldn’t remember the last time she’d picked up a book since the dead started walking.

Thankfully, Sarah didn’t seem to mind Clem’s current incompetence at social interaction. She stared at the younger girl for a moment, before blurting out. “It’s called The Guurgles. It’s about trans-dimensional body snatchers.” She smiled slightly as she finished, awaiting Clementine’s response.

Clementine’s mind went blank for a moment. “Oh… Cool.” She murmured. She really didn’t know what else to say. She didn’t understand half the words that had come out of Sarah’s mouth.

Sarah didn’t seem to mind her lackluster response, her eyes wandering inquisitively to where Clementine was clutching her injured arm. “What happened to you?” She asked, staring at her arm like she had never seen someone hurt before.

Clementine thought for a moment before deciding that truth was her best option here. “A dog bit me.” She informed the other girl, her arm throbbing just from the thought of what had happened earlier that day.

Sarah’s eyes widened, though they never left the other girl's arm. “Sounds scary… I bet it hurts.”

_ ‘Okay, has this girl seriously never seen an injury like this before. I could guess that she’s a bit sheltered, but you’d think everyone would have seen something like this at least once at this point.’ _

Clem decided to be direct with this girl. “Yeah, it does hurt. I could die if I don’t take care of it. Do you understand?” Her tone was serious, as she tried to convey the severity of the situation to the older girl. “I need something to clean it with. Do you know where to find something like that?”

Sarah’s eyes wandered for a moment, as she seemed to go through some internal struggle. Finally, she spoke. “I know where dad keeps stuff like that. It’s with the rest of his supplies.” She looked down for a moment, clearly feeling conflicted, until at last she looked back up at Clem. “I’ll help you.” She said, surprisingly firm.

Clementine’s lips curved up in a slight smile. “Good, thank you.”  _ ‘Maybe this group isn’t all that bad. Sure some of them are jerks, but she’s the second one who’s helped me tonight. Not to mention Pete believing me back in the forest. And Luke took my side against the rest of his group, even if he was a jerk earlier…’ _

She was interrupted from that train of thought by the sound of Sarah introducing herself.  _ ‘I guess it couldn’t hurt to give her my name, especially if it means she’ll help me…’  _ “I’m Clementine.” She reciprocated. “The other girl, downstairs, is Jessie.” She continued after a moment.

Sarah smiled. “I already knew her name. I could hear them all talking downstairs. They… Weren’t exactly quiet.” She said sheepishly, as though Clementine was going to scold her for eavesdropping when she herself had been sneaking around like a thief. 

Clementine thought about Jessie, and how she had behaved in the short time they’ve known each other. “Yeah… She kind of has that effect on people.”

Sarah looked deep in thought for a moment, before focusing back on Clementine. “So… We’re friends now, right?” Clementine balked for a moment, but before she could say anything Sarah continued, excited now. “We can be best friends. I haven’t met another girl my age since we lef- In a long time.” She whispered, smiling widely at the idea.

As sarah went on about how hard it was to be the only girl, and how Rebecca was too old and the baby would be too little, Clementine was deep in thought.  _ ‘I don’t want to string her along or anything, but I need her to get the supplies for me. Her group probably won’t let me stay once they find out what I’ve done, so I can’t be her friend. Unless they do let me stick around for some reason…’ _

Finally, deciding to hedge her bets, Clementine agreed, with a catch. “Okay, I’ll be your friend… But only if your group lets me stick around. They might not want me here, okay?”

Sarah nodded excitedly. “Okay. Do you promise? Friends have to trust each other no matter what.”

Clementine nodded back. “I promise.” But it didn’t end there. Sarah held out her hand, pinky extended, clearly waiting for the younger girl to reciprocate.

For a moment, Clementine bit her lip. A pinky promise was serious business… After a few moments of inner debate, she held out her hand gingerly, entwining her pinky with the other girl’s.

Sarah smiled at that. “A pinky swear is forever.” She intoned, and Clementine nodded back, with all the seriousness two kids could possibly muster.

With that out of the way, they got back to the matter at hand. “I’ll see if I can find the stuff my dad uses when I get a cut, okay?” Sarah explained. She turned her head and scanned the room. “Lemme take a look around.”

Clementine tilted her head slightly in confusion as Sarah circled around her bed to root around in a nightstand. Did Carlos seriously keep his medical supplies in his daughters room?  _ ‘Well, I’ll give him one thing. I definitely wouldn’t have known to look in here.’ _

Finally, Sarah climbed over the bed to stand in front of her once again, a bottle clutched in her hand. “I think this is it.” Sarah remarked, not seeming entirely sure.

Clementine looked over the bottle for the label.  _ ‘Peroxide. That’s just what I need!’  _ “That’ll work.” She said, smiling up at Sarah.

Sarah suddenly looked worried. “You can’t do it here though!” She whisper-shouted. “Someone will hear you!”

“Don’t worry, I won’t.” Clementine soothed. She would do this back in the shed where hopefully no one would hear her. She opened the door and prepared to make her way back outside, turning her head to thank Sarah, who only shushed her in response.

Having found everything she would need, Clementine made her way back to the shed. Thankfully the others were still in a meeting, or she likely would have been caught. As it was, she still winced every time the floor creaked under her foot as she beat her retreat back to the trapdoor. 

Finally back in the shed, Clementine surveyed the haul she had laid out on an old workbench. She had some fishing wire, a sewing needle, peroxide, cloth bandages, and a box of apple juice. Now came the fun part…

She laid her arm on the workbench, and stared at it for a long moment. There was only one thing she could say about what she was about to do. “This is gonna suck.” She groaned, as she reached for the peroxide.

Cleaning the wound was absolute agony. The burning felt worse than the actual pain from the bite. Whimpering, she took a sip of her apple juice to take her mind off of it. It didn’t work. Not by a longshot.

Next came stitching up the wound. She had thought the peroxide was bad, but this was  _ even worse. _ She cried out as the needle pierced her skin, and never stopped making noise as she closed the wound, stitch by stitch. By the time she was done, she felt like she was going to pass out, eyes watering in pure agony.

Finally, she needed to bandage it up. She reached for the cloth strips Alvin had given her with her good arm, and started to wrap them around her now cleaned and sewed up injury. Her hand slipping, the cloth strips fell out of her grip onto the floor, near the hole she had used to escape, Clementine cursed quietly, just wanting to get it over with. She reached down to grab the bandages, when she heard a familiar moaning sound…

At once, she jumped back in fear as a walker dragged itself through the hole she had made in the wall, reaching out for her with rotting, grasping hands. As she reached for her hammer, which she had left on the workbench with her other supplies, the walker grabbed hold of her leg, tripping her onto her back.

She cried out, kicking at its rotting face the best she could, until she noticed a brick to her right, beneath the workbench. She grabbed it, and slammed it against the creature's iron-gripped hand once, twice, and finally thrice as she dislodged his grip from her leg.

Undeterred, the walker pulled itself completely into the shed, crawling atop Clementine and forcing her to drop the brick, only kept from sinking it’s teeth into her by her leg, which was pressed firmly into its neck. Crying out, Clementine shoved hard with her leg, knocking the walker onto its back, allowing her to climb to her feet.

Thinking fast, she grabbed the brick again and threw it at her opponent's face as it tried to right itself, successfully knocking it onto its back. Looking around, she grabbed a rake and brandished it at her undead assailant. With a high-pitched battle cry, Clementine thrust the rake at the creature as it tried to lunge at her, holding it back. With a shout, Clementine shoved it back, impaling it on an anchor hanging on the wall behind it.

Quickly, Clementine grabbed the hammer she hadn’t been able to reach before, and swung it at the walker’s head with a yell. Over and over, she smashed her hammer into its skull, until at long last, she impaled the sharp end of the hammer directly into its forehead, and the creature went limp, jaw hanging open, as though in disbelief at its demise.

Panting loudly, Clementine heard the shed doors swing open with a bang, as several people came running to investigate the disturbance. “Holy shit…” She heard Luke say, though she was too busy catching her breath to turn and look at him just yet.

With a grunt of effort, she pulled her weapon from the skull of the walker, and finally turned around, head angled down as more voices joined Luke’s. “How the hell did that get in there?” Trucker Hat spoke, as he stood next to Luke, who was still in disbelief at the sight before him.

“That little girl’s tough as nails.” She heard Pete say as he surveyed the scene.

“Are you all right?” That came from Carlos.  _ ‘Funny, he didn’t seem to care before.’ _

“Holy shit! What happened!?” That was Jessie. Evidently everyone who had been at the meeting had come to investigate.

Finally, she looked up to glare at her impromptu audience. “I am still. Not. Bitten. I never was.” She turned her head to stare directly at each of them aside from Alvin and Jessie. “And you left me out here to die.” She panted, exhausted, but giddy that she could finally voice her resentment at what had been done to her.

That started a cacophony of responses from the cabin group as their brains caught up with the sight in front of them.

“Where’d you get that stuff?” Trucker Hat

“Did she steal from us!?” Rebecca

“This doesn’t change a thing. She hasn’t done anything to us.” Pete. At least he was still on her side.

“Says the one not carrying a baby!”

Finally, Clementine spoke. “I did. I took stuff, and I’m sorry. I really am.” She hadn’t wanted it to come to this, but she knew that she had to think about surviving. Even if it meant pissing a few people off.

Rebecca scoffed, and turned to give Pete side eye. “And you think you can trust her.” She huffed, feeling vindicated in her earlier feelings.

Pete just shook his head. “Goddamnit, don’t even start! Any of you would have done the same damn thing if you were half as tough as this little girl. So just save it.” He stared Rebecca down, as if daring her to say anything else.

Carlos closed his eyes tightly for a moment, as though fighting off a headache. Eventually he spoke. “Bring her in, and I’ll take a look at her arm.” He said, before walking away.  _ ‘Like it matters now. All the real work is done, no thanks to him.’  _ Clementine kept quiet though, not wanting to lose her chance to be welcomed into the cabin.

Everyone else turned to follow him back into the cabin, aside from Luke and Jessie. Jessie simply stared at her, a strange expression on her face. Luke on the other hand, had something to say. “So… You hungry?”

Clementine paused for a moment, debating if she should respond or not. After a few long seconds that had Luke shifting uncomfortably, she spoke up. “Yeah… sure.” And with that, she walked off, eager to get her little check-up over with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, here we go with chapter 3! A very Clem-centric chapter. Don't worry, there'll be plenty of Jessie in the next one. This took a bit longer than I was expecting, but I think it turned out pretty well. Next chapter will involve a lot of conversation.


	4. Cabin Conversations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine gets a check-up, and people talk about their feelings.

**Clementine**

Clementine sat at the kitchen table, faced towards Carlos as he inspected her now cleaned and stitched wound. Trucker hat, who she had learned was named Nick, had his back against the wall, slouching as his rifle leaned beside him. Luke paced nearby, arms crossed as he watched the doctor work. Jessie sat at the other side of the table, watching Carlos intently as he checked over Clementine’s arm, her legs swinging aimlessly.

Clementine ignored them all, her gaze squarely on the man poking at her injured arm, waiting for his assessment. “This may hurt a little.” He said suddenly, and before she could respond she felt a sharp pain shoot up her arm. She cried out, and couldn’t help but glare slightly at Carlos as Luke spoke up.

“So, how does it look?” He asked softly, watching Carlos as he finished up with Clementine’s arm. She stared at the doctor intently, awaiting his next words with bated breath.

Carlos hummed quietly. “Well, her suturing skills could use some work, but otherwise, I’d say she should be fine.”

Clementine let go of the breath she had been holding.  _ ‘Good. That was hard enough to get through the first time. I don’t want to do something like that again as long as I live.’  _ A part of her knew though, that she likely would. Injuries were all but inevitable with the world the way it was.

Luke let out his own sigh of relief as he continued. “So, it wasn’t a lurker bite?” He stepped forward slightly as he spoke, a hopeful note to his voice.

Carlos nodded slowly. “If it was, the fever would have set in by now, and her temperature would be through the roof.” Nick straightened up abruptly at those words, and all but ran out of the room, his body language betraying how tense he was. Luke narrowed his eyes slightly and followed after him, closing the door on his way out.

Jessie’s scowling eyes followed their movements as they left, then migrated to Carlos’ back as he washed his hands in the kitchen sink. “So, you didn’t even need to lock her in the shed all night. You could have just waited an hour and everything would be fine.” She accused.

Carlos ignored her for a moment, intently focused on washing his hands, while Clementine inspected her arm, turning it experimentally and feeling the slight twinge in her flesh at the sudden movement. After a few tense moments, he seemed to find his voice, though it wasn’t to respond to Jessie’s words.

“I wish you wouldn’t have done what you did.” His voice was even, but something about his tone made both girls tense and sit up straight. They eyed him carefully, but it was Clementine who responded.

“I was hurt, and you weren’t helping.” She insisted. Sure she felt a little bad for stealing, but she wasn’t going to apologize for trying to stay alive.

“Because we considered you a threat. Which you were.” He retorted, still with his back to them as he rinsed the soap from his hands. “Maybe you still are.” He said evenly, as though he was discussing the weather.

Clementine’s eyes widened slightly as she hurried to respond. “No, I’m not!” She said, voice raising unintentionally as she pleaded her case.

“We put you in that shed out of concern for the safety of the group, and the safety of our loved ones. And then you escaped, and persuaded  _ my daughter _ to help you steal from us!” His anger became clear now as he spoke. Jessie turned to stare at Clementine with wide eyes, her mouth slightly agape.  _ ‘Oh right, she hasn’t heard about that yet.’ _

Clementine could only shrug helplessly at the other girl as Carlos continued his little speech. “I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt, but there are a few things you both need to understand about  _ my daughter _ .” He turned around at last, so both of them could see the serious look on his face as he addressed them both. “She’s different from either of you. You may not get that initially, but once you’ve spent time with her, you’ll understand.”

Clementine nodded slightly as she thought about her previous interaction with Sarah.  _ ‘She was a little bit… Weird I guess, but, I mean, who isn’t at this point? There didn’t seem to be anything wrong with her…’ _

Carlos continued, unaware of her mental review. “If she knew how bad the world is… What it’s really like out there. She would… Cease to function.” He turned to stare out the window above the sink, his back to them once more. “She’s my little girl. She’s all I have left and I would ask that you  _ stay away _ from her.”

Clementine nodded, then spoke when she realized that he couldn’t see her. “I’m sorry… I had no idea.”

Jessie wasn’t so accommodating. “Wait, so she doesn’t even know what’s going on out there? Are you kidding me? How is she supposed to survive out there if she doesn’t even kn-” “You do not know what she needs!” Carlos roared, turning once more to stare down at the brunette.

Jessie simply crossed her arms, unintimidated by his threatening stance. “Maybe not, but if your whole plan is just to try and keep her away from all of this, then clearly  _ you  _ don’t know what she needs either! What I  _ do  _ know, is that if you don’t start teaching her how to survive, you’ll just end up getting her, and probably other people  _ killed! _ ”

Time seemed to stop for a moment as Clementine and Carlos processed Jessie’s outburst. Clementine was both confused and concerned by the other girl's loss of temper.  _ Maybe she’s right about Sarah, but this really isn’t the time! We’re on thin enough ice as it is without Jessie starting a fight!’ _

At last, Carlos got over his shock, and he drew himself up to his full height, towering over Jessie. “I don’t need a  _ child  _ to tell me how to raise my daughter. I will not stand here and be lectured by a  _ little girl  _ who speaks about things she could not possibly hope to understand!” Carlos’ face was red as he spoke. Clearly, he wasn’t used to being questioned like this.

Jessie flushed angrily at his dismissal. Before she could volley back however, Clementine interjected to defuse the situation. “Don’t worry, we won’t say anything to your daughter, I promise.” Jessie glared at her, but Clem shot back with her own look, silently telling her to  _ keep her mouth shut. _

Carlos stared at her for a moment, before sighing, his face returning to normal. “Alright… I believe you. Just keep your...  _ Friend,  _ under control, and we won’t have any problems.” With that, he marched over to the door. With one final warning look back at them, he disappeared through the doorway, closing it behind him.

As soon as the door closed, Jessie whipped around to glare at Clementine. “ _ What the hell was that _ ?” She hissed angrily. “You don’t get to speak for me, and you  _ don’t  _ get to tell me what to do.”

Clementine met her glare and fired back. “I’m just trying to keep you from getting us kicked out! Why would you argue with him like that, when we’re already on such thin ice!?” She whisper-shouted.

“Hey, you’re the one sneaking around  _ convincing his daughter to steal stuff! _ You don’t get to lecture me about pissing him off. Besides, you heard what he said. That girl has no idea how bad things are. He’s going to get her killed if he doesn’t start teaching her how to survive!”

Clem just shook her head. “I get what you’re saying, and I agree with you, but we can’t just tell him what to do with his daughter! Not when they could just kick us out at any moment.” 

Clementine took a deep breath, then let it out. “Please, just… Don’t start causing trouble with Sarah okay? At least for tonight. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather spend the night in a warm, cozy cabin than out it the woods with the walkers.”

Jessie’s anger faded slowly, and she sighed. “Fine, I won’t. Not because you’re telling me to or anything, it just makes sense.”

Clementine smirked slightly. “Sure, whatever makes you feel better.” Jessie’s glare returned for a moment, but faded just as fast, and they sat at the table in silence for a few moments.

Finally, Jessie spoke up again. “So... So much for not being a thief, huh thief?” she said, smirking at the other girl, her tone teasing.

Clem sputtered for a moment. “ _ Hey! _ You said yourself, I would’ve died if I didn’t take that stuff! Don’t act like you wouldn’t have done the same thing!”  _ ‘Does this girl ever stop being annoying!? Every time things start to calm down, she says something that sets me off again!’  _ Her ire faded as the other girl held up her hands in mock surrender.

“Hey, chill out okay? I’m not making fun of you. Honestly, I’m kinda impressed.” Clementine’s eyebrows raised skeptically as she continued. “I mean, sneaking into a cabin full of people, to look for supplies, all the while you have a messed up arm? That takes a lot of guts. And you even convinced one of them to help you do it!”

“Two.” Clem whispered after a moment of pause.

“What?”

“I convinced two of them to help me. Sarah gave me stuff to clean my arm, and Alvin gave me bandages. And a juice box. I got the needle on my own.”

Jessie stared at her for a moment, then started chuckling. “Wow, you’re pretty crazy Clem.” she said, in a vaguely respectful tone. Clementine blushed faintly at the praise. “I was just trying to survive. Like I said, you would’ve done the same.”

Suddenly, they heard the door creak, and both pairs of eyes shot over to the source of the noise as Luke appeared in the doorframe, carrying two bowls of what appeared to be oatmeal in either hand. “Hey uh… Brought you guys some food. Thought you might be hungry after, well… Everything.”

A short while later, all three of them were sitting around the table as the two girls dug into their food fervorously. Luke sat on one side of the table, closest to the door, while Clementine sat across from him. Jessie took the end of the table, near the sink, where Clem had sat for her inspection from Carlos.

Luke watched them eat, looking alarmed at their pace. “Wow uh, I guess it’s been awhile since yall’ve had a chance to eat, huh?” Jessie swallowed her latest mouthful quickly so she could respond. “I  _ had  _ food, but… I lost it saving this dingus over here.” Clementine would have retorted, but she was busy shoveling oatmeal into her mouth. It had been days since she’d had a decent meal. The last thing she’d eaten had been those few beans she could get before Sam ruined it for her. She had no intention of slowing down now just to respond to Jessie’s jab.

Luke’s eyes came to a rest on Clementine’s now fixed arm, currently covered by the striped sleeve of her shirt. “That’s gonna leave one helluva scar.”

Clementine stopped her fervent eating for a moment to shrug. “Better than losing it.” She said simply.  _ ‘Sure it may ache a bit, but a bit of pain now is a lot better than trying to survive with one arm.’ _

Luke smiled good-naturedly. “You can say that again. Scars… they’re way cooler than stumps.”

Clem flinched slightly as Luke’s seemingly innocuous statement sent her mind flashing back two years ago, to when she’d been rescued by Lee, missing an arm and looking like death itself. Luke must have seen something in her face, because his own tightened in concern. “What?” He asked

“Nothing.” Clementine shrugged. “I just had a friend who lost his arm once, that’s all.” Jessie paused in her hurried eating, and looked to be thinking about saying something. Before she could open her mouth though, the door clicked open again, and Nick walked in.

He stood there awkwardly for a few moments, staring at the three seated at the table. Luke watched him, concern in his eyes. Jessie glared at him with open hostility, while Clementine simply scowled into her oatmeal, hoping that he would ignore her.

She had no such luck however, as Nick shuffled up next to her. Sighing quietly, she put down her spoon, and swiveled to look up at him. He stumbled over his words as he struggled to speak. “Hey look, um. I just wanted to say that, I’m sorry for… Well… Being a dick out there. I got kinda aggro, and that was definitely not cool.” He looked lost. Evidently he wasn’t used to apologizing like this.

Luke came to his rescue. “Nick’s been known to go off once and a while. Don’t hold it against him.” He urged, clearly hoping that Clementine would forgive his friend.

Nick shrugged sheepishly. “I guess we all have our moments.”

Luke huffed amusedly, though the look on his face was serious. “You  _ definitely  _ had one back there.”

At last, Clementine sighed, and decided to let Nick off the hook. “You were just protecting your friends. I get it.” She said simply.  _ ‘Honestly, he kinda reminds me of Kenny with the way he was acting. He even has a trucker hat like Kenny.’ _

Nick rubbed the back of his neck. “I didn’t mean to be so harsh. It’s just… We had a bad experience once.”.

Clem looked up at him, frowning as she spoke. “We’ve all had bad experiences.” She told him sympathetically, thinking back to all that had happened in her short life. Losing her parents, Omid,  _ Lee,  _ and so many others. It was a miracle she was still going after all she had lost.  _ ‘I have to though.’  _ She thought to herself fiercely.  _ ‘I can’t let them have died for nothing.’ _

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Jessie staring at them, looking like she was debating adding her own two cents to the discussion. For better or worse though, she stayed quiet, leaning back in her chair.  _ ‘Maybe that’s for the best. I really don’t want to deal with her starting another fight right now.’ _

Nick sat down in the seat next to Clem as Luke spoke in support of his friend. “Nick lost his mom. We took care of someone who’d got bit.” Jessie choked on her oatmeal suddenly, coughing as her spoon clattered against the table. Three pairs of eyes focused on her in surprise as she tried to stifle her coughs. “You okay?” Luke asked her..

Jessie nodded, eyes watering as she struggled to get her breathing under control. After a moment, she was able to speak. “Y-yeah. I mean, yeah. I’m fine. It’s just, I… It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.” Clementine watched her carefully. ‘ _ That didn’t sound like nothing…’ _

Jessie met her eyes, and stared back challengingly, as though daring Clementine to call her out. Shaking her head, Clem decided to ask her about it later, as Nick and Luke continued where they’d left off.

“It was my fault.” NIck insisted sorrowfully. “I-” “It was no one’s fault.” Luke said firmly. “We thought we could control it. But… We couldn’t. And then she turned, and his mom was standing right there, and she got attacked… There was nothing we could do about it.” He finished, looking down at the table. 

Clementine felt a pang of sympathy in her heart as she looked at Nick. From the corner of her eye, she could see that even Jessie had a look of pity on her face.  _ “I guess losing parents is something we can all relate to here.’ _

Clementine thought about her parents, and Lee. “I understand.” She told him.

“Me too.” Clem heard from behind her. Jessie spoke softly, like she was lost in a memory. “When I… I do.” She said simply.

Nick smiled waveringly at them, and left the room without another word. With him gone, the girls were left to continue eating, albeit at a slower, more somber pace than before. 

After a few moments of silence, broken only by the sounds of scooping spoons and hurried chewing, Luke asked them another question. “So, since you guys are pretty much on your own… What’s your plan?”

Clementine thought for a moment.  _ ‘This place seems pretty safe, and cozy, and I like most of the people here, but… I need to find Christa. I won’t be able to find her by staying here.’  _ “I… Don’t know.” She admitted. “This place seems nice, but I need to find my friend, Christa.”

Luke looked at her sympathetically. “These woods are pretty big. It was honestly a miracle we found you two out there.” She knew what he was getting at.  _ ‘Can I really just give up on her like that though? I mean, she hasn’t exactly been the nicest to be around since Omid died, but she must be looking for me... Right?’ _

“I’ll probably go off on my own, once I’ve gotten a chance to rest.” Jessie mumbled, staring into her oatmeal. “I don’t like staying in one place for too long. It never really goes well.” 

Luke nodded, and then spoke to both of them. “Well, you’re both welcome to stay here if you want. You can rest up, and take some time to think about what you want to do. There’s no rush.”

Jessie just shrugged, but Clementine had more to say. “Do you think everyone else will be okay with it?”

Luke grinned conspiratorially. “They’ll just have to deal with it.” Clementine smiled back at him, and even Jessie had a small smirk at that.

Luke’s smile faded, as something else occurred to him. “So…” He asked slowly. “What happened to your parents? If you don’t mind me asking.” Clementine lowered her spoon, and Jessie stared down at her feet as he continued. “I mean, I assume what happened to them is the same thing that happened to just about everyone’s parents. You’re just… so young. It’s hard to imagine either of you could've made it very long on your own.”

“Other people took care of me, if that’s what you’re asking.” Clementine confirmed, somewhat bitterly. Jessie remained silent, eyes firmly on her shoes.

“I was just curious on how you made it this far.” Luke assuaged.

Clementine nodded. “I just… Tried to stay with good people and not do anything dumb.” She slouched as she spoke, face twisting in pain as she remembered all the friends she had lost.

Luke’s eyes widened in concern. “Hey, I’m sorry, I… I shouldn’t have asked.” He said guiltily.

Clementine sighed. “My parents went on vacation and left me with a babysitter. They never came back. We went to Savannah to find them… but they were already dead.”

Luke looked at her, and spoke in a consoling tone. “Wow… Well I’m sorry to hear that.” 

She continued, feeling unable to stop now that she was finally telling someone about the events that had changed her life forever. “This man found me and took care of me. We met up with all sorts of other people, and we all tried to make it… It didn’t work.”

Her lips twitched upwards slightly, as she thought of the man who had taken care of her those first few months. “His name was Lee. He taught me how to survive.” She smiled. “He’s the reason I keep my hair short.” She said, raising her arm to run her fingers through the short curls.

“What happened to him?” Clementine jumped slightly at the unexpected words. Words that had come not from Luke, but from Jessie. The other girl was watching her intently, awaiting her response. She had a certain look in her eyes. A look that said she already knew the answer.

Clementine shut her eyes tightly, as though that could block out the painful memories. “The same thing that happens to everyone. But he saved me first. Lots of times.” Her voice wavered slightly towards the end, as she was overcome by emotion. ‘ _ ’He saved me so many times, and I got him killed.’ _

Luke breathed deeply. “Well, he sounds like he was a real good guy.” He said softly. Jessie just leaned back in her chair silently, though the look in her eyes was sympathetic.

Clementine sniffled slightly, but managed to hold back the tidal wave of feelings she had kept inside for so long. “Yeah, he was.” She said wistfully.”

Luke turned to Jessie next, but she refused to meet his eyes. “I was with my mom for a while, but she’s gone now. I don’t really want to talk about it.”

He nodded. “I understand. It can be… Hard to talk about that sort of thing. It’s fine.”

The trio remained silent for a long moment, as all of them reflected on the friends and family they had lost along the way. Before any of them could say another word, the door opened once more, and Pete walked in. “I hate to interrupt, but I’m out there standing watch, and I can’t help but notice that this place is lit up like a goddamn beacon in the middle of the woods.”

Luke nodded. “Pete’s right. I think it's time we all turned in for the night.”

“Get your winks in while ya can. There’ll be plenty of work to do in the morning. We all have to put some effort in to earn our keep.” And with that, Pete left the room.

Luke made to follow him As he reached the door, he turned back To Clem and Jess. “You two wait here a minute. I’ll go see what I can figure out in terms of sleeping arrangements. It’s pretty packed in here, but I’ll try and find something cozy for you guys, okay?”

The two girls didn’t answer, being busy trying to finish their oatmeal before they had to go to sleep. They were alone for only a moment before the door opened yet again, revealing Rebecca, who clearly wasn’t happy to see them. “Oh, you’re still here.” She said cattily. She stood glaring at them for a moment, before moving to the sink to wash her hands.

Jessie glared back at her, dropping her spoon in the process, while Clementine simply continued eating, once again trying to just ignore the problem. Again however, that didn’t really work out. “I wouldn’t get comfortable if I were you.” The pregnant woman said acidly.

Finally, Clementine put down her spoon and turned to face Rebecca, her mouth opening before Jessie could formulate a response of her own. “Whose baby is it?” She asked cooly, determined not to lose her temper with this woman.

Rebecca’s hand scrubbing came to a sudden stop, and her voice was noticeably higher pitched when she next spoke. “Excuse me.” She said quickly, clearly trying not to lose her cool. Behind Clem, Jessie’s eyes widened comically at her words.

Clementine continued unabated. “If it’s not Alvin’s, whose is it?” She said evenly.

Rebecca walked right up to Clementine, looking down at her as she whispered. “ _ You shut your fucking mouth _ .” She hissed, though Clementine could hear the nervousness in her tone.

Clementine gave her an icy stare. “You should probably think about being nicer to me.” She said in a sickly sweet tone. She turned back to her oatmeal, and shrugged. “That’s just my advice.”

Rebecca stared at her in disbelief. “I knew you were going to be a fucking problem.” She whispered. Speaking a bit louder now, she continued. “You got what you came here for, now  _ go _ .” With that, she left the room, though after what had just happened, it felt more like a retreat.

Clementine felt eyes boring into the back of her head, and she turned to see Jessie, eyes wide, and mouth hanging open. If Clem didn’t know any better, she’d think the other girl was in  _ awe  _ of her. At long last, the brunette found her voice. “Damn Clem, that was  _ cold.” _

Clementine smirked and looked at the other girl, raising her chin to look down at Jessie. “I have my moments.” She said haughtily. They stared at each other for a moment, until finally they broke into chuckles. Sitting here, eating and laughing with another girl her age. It was the most normal Clementine had felt in a long time..

_ ‘It’d be nice to have her as a friend.’  _ Clementine thought to herself. Sure they hadn’t gotten off to the best start, and yes, Jessie could be absolutely  _ infuriating _ at times, but she had also saved Clementine’s life. Looking at them right now, you’d never know that they’d gotten into a fight when they first met.

Their snickering was cut off as Luke leaned through the doorway. “Did I miss something girls?” He asked, a curious smile on his face as he took in their amusement.

For a second, Clementine was nervous, not wanting Luke to find out about her exchange with Rebecca. Thankfully, Jessie came to her rescue. “Oh, we were just talking about girl stuff. You wouldn’t understand.” She told him, an angelically innocent smile on her face.

Clementine blinked in surprise.  _ ‘Wow, she’s a really good liar.’ _ It was jarring to see Jessie like this, when she’d been so abrasive in the short time she had known the brunette. If Clementine hadn’t been a part of what’d just happened, she would’ve never known that Jessie was lying to Luke’s face. 

Luke raised an eyebrow, but thankfully seemed to accept her response at face value. “Well, you’ll have to save that for the morning girls. I managed to get something set up for ya. It won’t be the comfiest, but it beats being out in the woods.”

**Jessie**

The sleeping arrangements Luke worked out for them amounted to a pile of blankets in a corner of the living room. The girls would have to share, as there weren’t enough for two separate piles.

Jessie sighed as she stared down at what was to be her bed for the night. Any other time, she would’ve put up a fight about having to share with some girl she hardly knew, but at this point, she was tired enough that she didn’t bother to question it.

With a grunt, she collapsed down on the right side of the bedding, furthest away from the wall. If something happened in the night, she didn’t want to be cornered. She pulled a thick, woolly blanket over her small frame, and snuggled deeply into the nest Luke had made.  _ ‘At least I’ll be warm…’ _

Above her, Luke raised an eyebrow at her display. “Uh, you sure you don’t want to take your shoes off or…?” Jessie huffed and pulled the blanket over her head, still able to hear the muffled sound of Luke’s chuckle. “Well, whatever makes ya comfortable I guess. I’ll be on the couch if you guys need anything. Good night.”

Outside her cocoon, Jessie could hear the muffled thump of Clementine taking her shoes off and dropping them on the floor. She could feel as the other girl stepped gingerly around Jessie’s body to reach her side of the bedding. The blanket moved as Clementine laid down and pulled it over her.

Finding it a bit stuffy in her little cocoon, Jessie finally popped her head out above the cover, breathing in deeply as she took in Clementine watching her in bemusement.

“Couldn’t breath?” Clementine asked sardonically as Jessie wriggled in place, trying to find a good spot for her head.

Jessie’s lips twitched slightly. “I’m just exhausted, okay? At least you got to pass out for a while. I haven’t slept in, like, a full day. Right now I feel like I could fall asleep and never wake up.”

Clementine yawned, stretching her whole body as she struggled to get comfortable. “I know what that’s like. Hopefully we’ll both get a good night’s sleep.”

Jessie laid still, finally having found a good spot. “Well, just don’t wake me up, got it? I plan to get as much sleep as I can.” She was facing Clementine, covers pulled right up to her neck.

Clementine snorted. “I’ll do my best.” She said, rolling her eyes.

Jessie made a noise of acknowledgement, and closed her eyes, done with the conversation. She could feel Clementine pull the covers tighter around herself, but that hardly even registered to her fading consciousness. A few minutes later, she was asleep.

She managed to get a few blessed hours of sleep, before she was awakened by squirming from next to her. For a moment, she kept her eyes shut tight, hoping that she could just fade back into sleep, but that proved useless.  _ ‘What did I tell her.’  _ She grumbled internally

At last, her eyes cracked open, to find Clementine staring down at her. It was dark in the living room, most of the candles having been extinguished at some point, probably by Pete. Jessie could barely see the other girl’s face, but those amber orbs were clearly visible, almost seeming to glow in the darkness of the room.

The other girl didn’t seem to have noticed that Jessie was awake now, and her annoyance quickly grew. Finding her voice, she whispered irritably, voice piercing the quiet of the room. “Any reason why you’re watching me sleep like a weirdo?”

Clementine jumped slightly at those words, eyes darting to stare directly into Jessie’s green orbs. After a moment of startled silence, she spoke. “I wasn’t watching you.” She whispered hurriedly.

Jessie stared at her, unimpressed. “Yes you were.”

“Was not.”

“Were too.”

“Was not!”

That last denial may have been a  _ bit  _ too loud, as suddenly they heard movement, and murmuring coming from one of the couches. Both girls froze for a few tense moments, until it was clear that whoever made the noise was thankfully still asleep. They continued their exchange, careful to stay quiet this time.

“I wasn’t watching you sleep.” Clementine mumbled. Now that her eyes had adjusted to the dark, Jessie could see that her brow was furrowed.

Jessie narrowed her eyes, thoroughly unconvinced. “Really? What were you doing then?”

Clementine averted her eyes. “I was… Thinking.” She murmured, almost too quiet for Jessie to hear.

Jessie raised an eyebrow. “Thinking.” She said simply, unimpressed.

Clementine nodded quickly.

“About what?”

Clementine paused for a moment, looking unsure of herself. Finally, she found her voice. “In the woods… You left your stuff behind. To help me.” She said, voice making it sound almost like a question.

Jessie blinked.  _ ‘That’s… Not what I was expecting her to say.’  _ She shrugged slightly. “Yeah… What about it?”

Clementine continued, voice gaining confidence now. “Why’d you do it?”

Jessie squinted, not quite believing what she was hearing. “Are you asking… Why did I save your life?”

The ebony-haired girl nodded. “You could have just left me. No one would’ve ever known. You lost everything to save me. I just want to know why you did it.”

The brunette frowned as she stared at the other girl. “I’m not a bad person. I wasn’t just going to leave you to die. Are you saying that  _ you _ wouldn’t try and help someone in that situation?”

Clementine’s eyes widened. “What? No, of course not. I mean,  _ of course _ I’d help someone if they were in trouble-” “But you don’t think I would? Is that it? You don’t know me.”  _ God, she really doesn’t think much of me does she?’ _

Clementine’s eyes were comically wide now, as she backpedaled. “That’s not what I’m trying to say,  _ I swear,  _ just…” 

She took a deep breath, and then continued. “What I’m trying to say is… Thank you. That was a really nice thing you did, when you could’ve just left, so  _ thank you.  _ I really appreciate it.”

To say that Jessie was shocked by Clementine’s words was an understatement. Her eyes widened and her mouth hung open slightly. She was glad the room was so dark, as it kept Clementine from seeing her blush. “Oh, uh… Well, you’re welcome, I guess.” She stammered. “Don’t mention it.” 

All her annoyance had abandoned her, leaving her to feel flustered by the other girl’s words. She clamped down on that feeling and continued, hoping that Clem couldn’t hear it in her voice. “So… Is that all you wanted to say?”

For a moment, Clementine looked like she wanted to say something else, but she nodded instead. “Yeah, that was it.” She said with a soft smile.

Jessie nodded tiredly, then smirked as she thought of something. “Next time you wanna shower me with praise, could you wait til morning?”

And with that, the smile disappeared from Clementine’s face, replaced with a look of annoyance that had become familiar to Jessie in the short time she had known the other girl. “Shut up.” She hissed. She rolled over so her back was to Jessie. “Last time I ever say anything nice about you.” She grumbled

Jessie laughed softly, and laid her head back down, ready to give sleep another try. “G’night.” She murmured, already nodding off. 

Just before she faded back into sleep, she heard a faint “Good night.” From the other side of the bedding, and with that, she was fast asleep, as though she had never been interrupted in the first place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long. I've been procrastinating hard, but luckily I finally got around to finishing this one up. We start to get a tiny bit of insight into Jessie's backstory, and we get to see the relationship between her and Clementine progress. I hope you enjoy it. I'll try to get the next one out sooner, though I can't promise anything. Comments are greatly appreciated!


	5. A Lively Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> \- Clementine and Jessie wake up to a bit of a surprise after a good night's sleep, and Jessie struggles with social interaction and authority. Wrestling is involved.

**Jessie**

Jessie slept shockingly well that night. She wasn’t a big fan of groups, but even she couldn’t deny that it was nice to have someone else keeping watch so she could get some rest without worrying about creeps or bandits breaking in.

As her eyes fluttered open that morning, watering slightly at the strong light pouring in from the windows, she couldn’t help but notice that she felt  _ extremely  _ warm. More so than she should’ve with the blanket she was given…

As the sleep cleared from her mind, she realized that this warmth was the result of something, or rather,  _ someone,  _ wrapped around her. More specifically, Clementine.

At some point in the night the other girl must have shuffled around in her sleep, until their arms were tangled around each other, pulling them together. Jessie refused to consider the possibility that  _ she  _ could be partially to blame. She didn’t move around in her sleep like that. It  _ must  _ have been Clementine

Definitely.

As her brain tried to make sense of her current situation, Jessie felt the girl in her arms begin to squirm. Her mind raced as she struggled to think of a way out of this situation, until finally, amber eyes blinked open, staring directly into hers.

For a moment, Clementine’s eyes seemed to scan over Jessie, seemingly trying to process what was going on. Then, they drifted back up to lock with Jessie’s own green pair.

For long, agonizing seconds, they stared at each other, each waiting for the other to make the first move. Finally, Jessie shifted slightly on her side, and the spell broke.

Moving suddenly, they cast the blanket aside and scrambled in opposite directions from each other, practically shoving each other in their urgent desire to escape the situation. After a few moments of panicked breathing, Clementine was the first to find her voice.

“Wha-what were you doing!?” She cried, not even bothering to keep her voice down.

Jessie’s eyes widened comically. “Me?! I should be asking you that! Why the  _ hell _ were you all over me you-you little weirdo!?”

Clementine stared at her, disbelief clear on her face. “Hey! You had your arms around me too! You’re not exactly innocent in this!”

“Only cause you moved into me! I don’t do that sort of thing, so it must’ve been  _ you _ .”

The other girl scoffed. “You’ve supposedly been on your own for awhile, so how would you even know if you move around? Heck, you’re probably so lonely that you just latched onto the first person who was willing to be near you in who knows how long!”

Jessie’s mouth hung open at that, and she struggled to formulate a response. “Why, you- _ you little brat! _ ” Her cheeks heated up as she tried to formulate a response.

The other girl gave a smug smirk at that. “See! You don’t even have a defense! Maybe I do move around in my sleep, but there’s no way we would’ve ended up like that without you helping out, so the- _ ow! _ ” She yelped as Jessie kicked her in the leg.

Clementine stared at her in shock, and Jessie tensed, ready for retaliation. Instead, the other girl simply leveled a glare at her.

After a moment, she finally spoke, irritation laced through her tone. “Why are you even wearing shoes in bed?” She questioned, rubbing her leg where she’d been kicked.

Jessie shrugged, still aggravated. “I don’t know. Why’re you wearing that stupid hat in bed?” She queried acidly.

She regretted her words immediately when she saw the look of hurt flash on Clementine’s face. The girl reached up, holding onto her hat protectively. “I was just asking you a question. You don’t have to be a jerk about it…” She muttered bitterly.

Jessie cringed at her words. Somehow, she always managed to piss people off. It was a special talent of hers, something she sometimes even enjoyed. It was fun to mess with people. This didn’t feel fun though. For whatever reason, something inside her desired to make it up to this girl. After a moment of contemplation, she decided to offer an olive branch.

“I uh… I just like to be ready if I have to make a run for it, ya know? That way I don’t have to waste time putting them on if something’s after me.” She sighed when Clementine wouldn’t look her in the eye. “Listen… I’m sorry I insulted your hat. I was just being pissy. I… I don’t mean anything by it. Honest.” She paused then, hoping Clementine would accept her little attempt at reconciliation.

Finally, Clementine looked at her. She seemed to debate something in her head a moment, until finally, she spoke. “I get it. I usually wear my shoes when I sleep, too. It’s just, I don’t normally have a bed to sleep in. Even this is pretty great compared to where I usually get to sleep. I just wanted to be comfy for a change.”

She paused for a moment, then continued. “This hat… My dad gave it to me. It was the last thing I ever got from my parents before, well, you know.”

Jessie nodded, eyes widening as she realized just how much of a jerk she’d been. “Shit, I’m…  _ Really  _ sorry okay? I didn’t know. I… I know I can be a real jerk sometimes. It’s a problem I have. Just… I’m sorry.”

Clementine nodded, then smiled slightly as Jessie apologized. “Well… You did save my life, so I guess I can forgive you.This time, at least.”

“Well, gee, thanks.” They both chuckled at that, and finally Jessie sat up properly to take a look around at the living room.

Besides them, the room was completely empty. Probably a good thing considering their little argument and heart-to-heart. The candles had all been blown out now that the sun was up to do its job, and the blankets that had been strewn across the couches were now tucked up in the corners so people could sit.

Her brow furrowed slightly. ‘ _ Where is everyone? You’d think they’d have woken us up by no- _ ’ Suddenly, her trail of thought came to a sudden halt as something  _ terrible  _ occurred to her.

She turned to Clementine, the other girl tilting her head as she saw the panic written on her face. “Uh, Clem. You uh… You don’t think anyone…  _ Saw  _ us like that… Do you?”

The other girl tensed, her eyes widening as her mind processed Jessie’s words. “Oh god…” She moaned, covering her face with both hands. “I hope not. That would be…”

“ _ Super embarrassing?” _

“ _ Yeah _ .”

For a moment, they just sat there, contemplating the horror of their predicament, until the sound of creaking footsteps from upstairs broke them out of their stupor. Two heads swiveled towards the stairs, waiting for whoever it was to come down.

Finally, the footsteps reached the stairs, and a moment later, Sarah popped into view. Her eyes widened behind her glasses as she saw the both of them sitting up, and she bounded down the stairs and rushed towards them.

Jessie tensed slightly, not used to people rushing towards her with  _ good  _ intentions, and she stood up quickly to meet the older girls advance. She could see Clementine standing out of the corner of her eye, but her gaze remained focused on the girl coming towards her.

Despite herself, Jessie was slightly nervous. She hadn’t had a chance to meet Sarah the night before, and the prospect of meeting yet another new person after so long by herself put her slightly on edge.

Clementine sidled up next to her, wearing a strange look on her face. A moment of inspection made her realize that said look was one of  _ concern _ , of all things. Huffing slightly, she ignored the other girl. ‘ _ What’s her deal? I’m not some little kid who needs her hand held when she meets a new person. I’m almost 12!’ _

Sarah stopped in front of them, smiling. “Oh, I’m so glad you guys are finally up! I’ve been waiting  _ forever  _ but dad said to let you sleep since you were both so tired!” After a moment of stunned silence from Jessie, Sarah seemed to remember something. “Oh, right! My name’s Sarah. You’re Jessie, right? I already met Clementine when I, er, helped her out.” She rubbed the back of her neck uncertainly, as though Jessie would admonish her for helping Clementine.

After a moment, Jessie found her voice. “Uh, yeah, I’m Jessie. It’s…  _ Good _ … To meet you?” She offered, not really sure what she should say. Thankfully Clementine chose that moment to step into the conversation.

“Thanks again for helping me. I’m sorry I got you in trouble with your dad.”

Sarah nodded eagerly. “I was glad to help! Even if I did get in  _ major  _ trouble for it.” She shuddered exaggeratedly to emphasize her point.

Jessie pounced on that opening, glad to have something she could relate to. “What’d he do? I used to get in trouble with my parents  _ all the time.  _ It sucked.”

Sarah took a deep, shuddering breath, as though preparing herself to relive the experience. Just as Jessie was starting to worry that she shouldn’t have asked, she spoke. “He told me that I made him very worried, and that he was  _ very _ disappointed in me for what I did. He said that I’d be in big trouble if I ever did anything like that again.”

Jessie stared at her in disbelief. ‘ _ Okay… Wow. If that’s what qualifies as “major trouble” to her, there’s no way she would’ve survived my mother.’ _

Before she could voice that thought, Clementine jumped in. “Wow… That’s uh, pretty terrible. I’m sorry I made you go through that…” Her tone was almost questioning as she ended off, as though she couldn’t quite bring herself to believe the words coming out of her mouth.

“Oh yeah, it was the  _ worst. _ It was worth it though. Friends have to help each other out, right?”

Clementine nodded, while Jessie just rolled her eyes at them both. Thankfully, Sarah didn’t notice.

Luckily for all of them, that was enough to serve as an icebreaker, and before long, the three girls were sitting around the coffee table, chatting, though Sarah led most of the conversation.

“Here!” Sarah said eagerly, all but shoving a book into Clementine’s hands. “You seemed interested in it last night, so I thought I’d let you borrow it for a bit!”

“Uh, thanks.” Clementine said, looking uncertain. “I’ll… give it a try.”

To Jessie, Sarah asked if she’d ever played chess. When Jessie said no, she offered to teach her to play. Despite her skepticism, Jessie agreed, not wanting to ruin the friendly mood that had settled in the room.

As Sarah explained the rules and each of the pieces, Jessie couldn’t help but notice Clementine looking rather befuddled at the book she was holding. Smirking slightly, she decided to tease her a bit. “Hey Clem, you enjoying that book?”

The other girl sighed deeply before tilting her head up with a look that said  _ shut up, _ but before she could open her mouth, Sarah interjected. “It’s a really good book, I’m sure she’ll love it!”

Jessie tilted her head in mock innocence. “It’s just that… She looked like she might be struggling a bit. Are you sure it’s at her reading level?” She said, voice laden with faux-concern.

Sarah’s eyes widened in real concern, and she turned to Clementine, fingers picking at her sleeve. “Oh, I never thought about that! Are you okay with it? I can find you another book if-”

“I’m fine.” Clementine said, with perhaps more cheer than was necessary.

“Really? It’s okay if yo-”

“ _ I’m fine. _ ” She repeated, her tone more forced this time.

Luckily for her, Sarah didn’t seem to pick up on her frustration. “Oh, well okay then. Still, if you have any questions or anything about the book, I’d be happy to help you out.”

Clementine smiled and nodded, but as soon as Sarah turned away to continue her explanation of chess, she shot Jessie a glare. Jessie just smiled benignly back at her as she listened to Sarah speak.

Once they actually started playing, it became clear that Jessie really should’ve paid attention rather than tease Clementine, as she soon found herself getting her ass kicked by Sarah. If the other girl hadn’t been so utterly innocent, she’d think Sarah was _ enjoying  _ having someone to beat the snot out of at chess.

Thankfully, the conversation between the three of them was enough to distract her from her bruised ego, at least for the moment. Really, the only downside of their current situation was Carlos, checking in every few minutes from the kitchen, as though she’d suddenly snap and murder Sarah if he didn’t keep an eye on her. _ ‘I mean, sure, this game makes me want to do something incredibly violent, but I wouldn’t actually do it…’ _

The first thing she’d done once they’d gotten settled was ask where everyone was, for the sake of her own nerves. According to Sarah, Luke was out patrolling to make sure nothing dangerous was nearby, Nick was chopping firewood, Rebecca was in her room, and the rest of the adults were ‘discussing’ something in the kitchen while Alvin got breakfast ready.

When she asked just what they were discussing, Sarah simply shrugged.  _ ‘Apparently, these people really don’t tell her anything. Not sure how they expect her to survive like that.’ _

Somehow, as their conversation continued, they got onto the topic of  _ fashion  _ of all things. “Your hair looks so pretty!” Sarah gushed to Clementine, not even needing to focus on the board to effortlessly counter every move Jessie made. “Maybe I should try cutting my hair short like that!”

She looked over to Jessie’s roughly cut, uneven locks, her enthusiasm dying off. “I, uh… Your hair is nice too.” She offered.  _ ‘Alright, so on top of being absurdly innocent, she’s also a terrible liar. Good to know.’ _

Jessie snorted. “It’s okay, you can say it looks bad. I wasn’t exactly going for  _ style  _ when I chopped it off.”

Sarah nodded weakly, eyes brightening again as they wandered down to Jessie’s clothing. “I really like your hoodie though! Pink looks really nice on you, and the red stitches all over it make it look really pretty and unique!”

Jessie smiled slightly at that, fingering the material of her hoodie as she looked down at it. “Thanks… My mom gave it to me, a while back now. She fixed it up, and said I’d grow into it… I guess I did.” Her tone grew somber as she spoke. She didn’t like thinking about her mom, and she didn’t know what had possessed her to actually talk about it with these girls.

Looking up, she saw twin looks of pity directed towards her, and she tensed up. She _ hated  _ it when people pitied her. Hated it more than almost anything.

At last, Clementine spoke. “It really does look nice on you.” She said softly.

“Thanks.” Jessie said shortly.

“Do you… Do you wanna talk about-”

“I’m  _ fine _ .” She bit out, wishing they would just wipe those  _ damn _ looks off their faces.

Finally, Sarah seemed to find her voice. “Your mom… She’s not here…”

Jessie stared at her. “No… She’s not.”

“Was it lurkers?”

Jessie froze in shock, and a quick glance revealed that Clementine was in a similar state. She didn’t particularly care that Carlos had asked her not to say anything about that stuff to Sarah, but she  _ was _ concerned about the lecture she’d get if Carlos happened to walk in at that moment. Not that she was scared of him or anything. She just didn’t want to deal with it.

Sarah looked at both of them, then sighed aggravatedly at their expressions. “I’m not…  _ Stupid _ , okay? I know things… Aren’t okay, in the world. I know that.” Her gaze shifted between the two of them. “Dad asked you not to say anything, didn’t he?”

After a moment, Jessie nodded, ignoring the warning look she was getting from Clementine. “Yeah, he did… And yes, it was…”

Sarah sighed again, looking down at her knees. “I wish they wouldn’t keep stuff from me so much… I want to be a part of the group… To  _ help _ . It feels like they don’t even trust me.”

She looked up again at Jessie, pity clear in her eyes. “I’m really sorry about your mom. I… I can’t imagine what I’d do if I lost my dad. I don’t think I’d… Be able to keep going… Without my dad around.”

Jessie nodded, heart twisting as she thought about her mother. “It was the worst day of my life, but… I’m still here, aren’t I?”

Feeling eyes on her, she turned her head to meet Clementine’s gaze. The curly-haired girl watched her with understanding eyes. Jessie wished she’d just  _ stop _ .

After a moment of silence, Sarah seemed to perk up again. “Well, now that you’re here, you don’t have to be alone. You can stay here with us! Both of you can.”

Jessie winced at the thought of having to live with Carlos and Rebecca. “I don’t know… I don’t really like groups that much. Or staying in one place. I mean, you seem nice, but… Anyways, you don’t even know if the other’s would let me stay.” She offered the older girl a weak smile, hoping that would be enough for her.

Sarah frowned. “Are you sure? We’d be really happy to have you guys around. I know I would! It’d be so nice to have other girls in the group! I’m sure the others would be okay with it.”

Before Jessie could reaffirm her answer, Clementine butted it, a slight frown on her face. “Why don’t you like groups?” 

She huffed irritably, wishing they’d just take no for an answer. “I just  _ don’t _ , okay? It’s just... Better to be on my own. Drop it.”

Clementine raised an eyebrow, but mercifully didn’t say anything. Sarah looked like she wanted to argue, but a glare from Jessie shut that down. They remained in silence for long, awkward seconds after that little outburst, until Sarah sat up straight once more and moved a piece on the chessboard, triggering a curse from Jessie that managed to lighten the mood.

Somehow, the conversation managed to bounce back from the rather depressing turn it had taken.They went through a variety of topics, led by Sarah. They managed to talk about everything from music to  _ school  _ of all things. Jessie made sure to stay out of that conversation. She didn’t exactly have fond memories of school, and she had no desire to recount those memories after everything she’d already said.

And of course, all the while, Jessie was getting thoroughly destroyed by Sarah in chess. After her latest loss, she seethed quietly, trying desperately to avoid an outburst that would probably traumatize Sarah for life.

Clementine wasn’t exactly helping her mood. “Wow Jessie, is that your  _ third  _ loss in a row? Maybe chess just isn’t your game?” Clementine’s face was obscured by the book in her hands, but Jessie just  _ knew  _ the little brat was smirking behind it.

Sarah must’ve seen the look on her face, as she rushed to placate her. “She’s not doing  _ that  _ bad. Honestly, I think she’s doing pretty well for someone who’s never played befo-”

“ _ Don’t  _ patronize me.” She growled, earning a startled look from the older girl.

Sarah rubbed her arm nervously. “I’m not, I promise _. _ You’re really not that bad… You wanna do something else now?”

Jessie sniffed and looked down at the chessboard. She may not have been thrilled to play at first, but now it was a matter of pride. No way was she giving up until she’d won at least once. She looked up at Sarah with determination in her eyes. “Let’s play again.” She said firmly.

Sarah looked unsure at that, which was already enough to irritate Jessie. What really set her blood boiling was when Clementine set her book down to add her own two cents.. “Are you sure about that? Don’t you need to be pretty smart to be good at chess?”

Jessie froze. Slowly, her head shifted to gaze directly at Clementine. “And  _ what _ ?” She said, dangerously quiet. “Do you mean by  _ that _ ?”

Clementine shrugged, a smug smile growing on her lips. “Well, between sucking at chess, and thinking that sitting around in the woods and leaving your supplies out in the open was a good idea, you don’t exactly seem like the most logical thinker. Plus, you get so angry you keep making mistakes. Even I could probably do better at chess than you.”

Jessie closed her eyes, and tried the breathing exercises her dad had taught her years ago. It didn’t calm her down. Not one bit. She opened her eyes again to glare directly at Clementine. “Are you calling me stupid?” She hissed.

Sarah looked between them, eyes wide behind her glasses, but Clementine was already speaking before she could intervene. “Nope. I’m just saying that you don’t seem like much of a thinker.” She put a hand to her chin in thought. “Hmm. Can’t think well, can’t fight… What are you good at?”

The brunette sucked in air between her teeth, seething at the other girl’s implication. “What the hell are you talking about? I would’ve kicked your ass if you hadn’t stopped the fight then, and don’t you ever forget it!”

“Is that right?”

“What, you think I’m a liar?”

“ _ Maybe _ .” Clementine drawled, a smartass grin on her face.

She clenched her hands into fists, nails biting into her palms. “Well  _ maybe  _ I’ll punch you in the nose. How’s that sound?”

“Uh guys. Maybe you should both just calm down…”

Clementine crossed her arms. “No. If she thinks she’s so tough, then she should prove it.”

Jessie scoffed. “You really want me to beat you up right now?” She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but there was just something about Clementine that made her extra competitive. She wanted to show the other girl how much better she was, at fighting or at anything else.

She shook her head. “Not exactly. I was thinking more… wrestling. No punches or kicks. We’re not actually trying to hurt each other. Is that okay?”

“Fine by me.”

And that was how they wound up wrestling on the floor, squirming and grappling as Sarah watched on, half-amused and half-concerned. For over a minute they struggled for control, rolling around and trying to pin one another, until finally Jessie managed to trap Clementine on her back.

She sat atop Clementine’s stomach, doing her best to control the girl’s legs with her right arm, while her left hand was tangled in dark, curly hair. Not quite yanking yet. Merely a warning of what would happen should the other girl continue to resist.

For her part, Clementine was putting up a valiant struggle. Her legs swung wildly, trying to dislodge Jessie from her dominant position. One hand was trying to remove Jessie’s grip from her hair, while the other was shoved against Jessie’s face, trying to push her away, but only really succeeding in squishing her facial features.

Just as Jessie was contemplating sinking her teeth into the palm covering her mouth, she was distracted by the sound of giggling. Clementine’s hand left her face, and Jessie let go of her hair as both girls looked over to the source of the noise.

Sarah had a hand over her mouth, eyes filled with mirth as she watched their little grudge match. Once she realized that they’d stopped, she pulled her hand away to speak. “Oh sorry! It’s just… You two are  _ so cute _ .” She squeed. “I mean, you were cute before when you guys were cuddled up asleep together, but this is just adorable! It reminds me of this book I read once... There were these two characters that bickered and fought a lot, but deep down, you could tell they really cared about each other!”

**Clementine**

Her cheeks burned as Sarah continued to babble on, and she ceased her struggling entirely as she processed that, indeed, people  _ had _ seen her and Jessie tangled up in each other in their makeshift bed. She ran her hand down her face in embarrassment, then looked up in the hope that, at the very least, Jessie was just as embarrassed as she was. What she saw erased her embarrassment entirely, replacing it with  _ concern. _

Jessie had a dark look on her face, one that only grew angrier as Sarah rambled on, oblivious to the girl's worsening mood. ‘ _ Looks like someone really doesn’t like being called cute. I’ll have to keep that in mind. _ ’ She wasn’t a fan of it either, but her distaste was clearly nothing compared to Jessie’s growing rage.

Her concern for Sarah’s safety grew as Jessie stood up, and Clementine quickly followed. The brunette took a step towards the hispanic girl, and Clementine knew she’d have to do something drastic to prevent an imminent disaster. Deciding that a distraction was in order, she made a quick choice.

Moving quickly so that Jessie wouldn’t have time to counter her, Clementine came up from behind and threw her arms around her neck, dragging her down to the ground in a headlock as the other girl let out an undignified squeal of surprise.

Immediately, Jessie was squirming and fighting like hell, trying to dislodge Clementine’s grip, but she held on tight. Eventually, they rolled so that they were on their sides, with Clementine clinging to Jessie’s back, keeping her arms pinned to her sides.

As they struggled, Clementine was surprised to hear her opponent laugh as she squirmed from side to side. Her grip loosened, and Jessie was able to twist around enough that she could look Clementine in the face. “ _ That. _ ” She panted. “Was a cheap move.”

Clementine smirked, still a little shocked at Jessie’s sudden change of attitude. “So was you tackling me back in the woods.” She shot back.

They stared at each other for a minute, then started giggling. Distracted, Clementine released her grip on the other girl’s arms, only to yelp as Jessie took the opportunity to wrestle her onto her back. They struggled against each other, more playfully this time, until the sound of a door opening caught their attention, and they paused in place. Clementine was atop Jessie, the brunette’s knee planted against her stomach, and Clementine’s hands pinning the other girl by her shoulders.

Standing in the doorway were Luke and Carlos. The former had a raised eyebrow and a smirk on his face as he surveyed the scene before him, while the latter had his arms crossed and a stern look on his face, seemingly ready to launch into a lecture at any moment.

Luke was the first to speak, a teasing note to his voice. “Looks like you girls are having a good time. Is Sarah refereeing?” Immediately, the two girls broke apart, pulling themselves to their feet. Clementine held onto her arm, not making eye contact with the man, while Jessie stared him down.

“Clem here didn’t think I could beat her in a fight. I was just proving her wrong.” She said matter-of-factly.

Luke crossed his arms, amusement clear on his face. “Really? Cause from where I was standing, it sure looked like she had you on the ropes.”

Jessie just scoffed. “That was just a… small setback. I definitely would’ve won if Sarah hadn’t distracted me earlier.”

Clementine chuckled at that. “Sure, whatever helps you sleep at night.” The other girl huffed and shook her head, failing to hide the small smile that appeared on her face.

Evidently tired of waiting for his turn to speak, Carlos stepped forwards, and Clementine resisted the urge to take a step back at the frown on his face. “Girls… While I understand that at your age, you have a lot of energy to burn, I would appreciate it if you refrained from roughhousing like that in the cabin. You wouldn’t want to accidentally break anything.”

As he spoke, Clementine noticed how his eyes drifted towards Sarah, and she immediately knew that  _ not in the cabin  _ really meant  _ not in front of my daughter _ . “Sorry.” She murmured. “We were just trying to have some fun.” Jessie just rolled her eyes, not saying a word.

Carlos nodded at her. “I don’t mind you having fun. Just be more mindful that you don’t end up hurting yourself.” He looked at Luke, who stood up straighter and took a step into the room. Everyone turned to focus on him as he seemed to be searching for the right words.

Finally, after looking first at Jessie and then Clementine, he spoke. “Listen, girls… We’ve been talking, and we’d like to make you two an offer.” He looked at Carlos, who took over without missing a beat.

“After discussing things,  _ as a group _ .” He emphasized, sending a stern look Luke’s way. “We’ve decided that it would be for the best if the both of you remained with us. It’s simply not safe for two young girls to be out on their own.”

Clementine froze at his unexpected offer, and she could see out of the corner of her eye that Jessie had tensed up next to her. She thought hard for a moment about how to respond as Sarah squealed excitedly behind her.  _ ‘On one hand, I do like most of the people… But Christa might still be out there! Can I really give up a place like this just for a chance at finding her though? She’s probably already moved on…’ _

At long last, she made a decision. Taking a deep breath, she looked up at Carlos. “That’s really nice of you. Thanks. I… I think I’d like to stay here.”

Carlos nodded approvingly, while Luke gave her a big smile. “And we’d all like to have you here.” He corrected himself when Clementine gave him a skeptical look. “Well, most of us at least. She’ll come around, don’t worry.”

Then, all eyes in the room were all Jessie. She scowled slightly at all the attention, until finally, she opened her mouth. “I… Don’t think that’s a good idea. Thanks but, no thanks. I’m good.”

Clementine frowned at that. She’d only been on her own a few times since everything had happened, and it was never a pleasant experience. She didn’t really understand how someone could survive on their own out there, and she definitely didn’t understand why someone would ever  _ want  _ to be on their own.

None of the others seemed particularly thrilled with Jessie’s choice either. Still on the couch, Sarah had a deep, sad frown as she studied the other girl, hands gripping the arm rest tightly. Luke looked disappointed as well, but he merely sighed. “I am… Truly sorry to hear that. I hope you’ll change your mind, but if that’s what you want, well…”

Carlos had a much more visceral reaction. “You cannot be serious about letting her go off on her own. This is about more than her personal preferences!” Turning to Jessie, he continued. “Listen. I understand that you may be leery of strangers. That is perfectly reasonable considering the state of things. However, you must understand that you can trust us. You need to stay here, where it’s  _ safe _ .”

She stared up at him with a look of frustration. “I don’t  _ need  _ to do anything! I can handle myself just fine. Staying away from groups is how I’ve survived this long, and I’m not about to ruin that now! It’s not about what  _ I  _ want, it’s about doing what I need to do to survive.”

Carlos shook his head as Clementine and the others watched the growing confrontation. “Perhaps you’ve gotten lucky so far, but luck always runs out eventually, especially for someone as young and foolhardy as you. If you truly care about survival, you’ll stay here where you’ll have adults to look after you. I’m not going to argue with a  _ child _ . You’ll understand eventually that this is what’s best for you!”

Looking around, Clementine could see that Sarah was becoming increasingly nervous as Jessie and Carlos became louder and louder. She tried to make eye contact with the older girl to reassure her, but her gaze was solely fixed on the argument brewing in front of her. For his part, Luke looked ready to step in, but he couldn’t get a word in before what Jessie said next...

“You can’t make me stay here! You’re not my fucking dad!” Jessie snarled, hands clenching into fists by her sides as she pulled herself up to her full height, which honestly wasn’t much compared to who she was arguing against. Luke’s eyes widened at her outburst, and Sarah’s jaw was practically on the floor at hearing such a word levied at her father. Clementine just stood there, frozen in shock.

Carlos’ face was bright red as he glowered down at the small girl before him. “And you should consider yourself very lucky for that! Were I your father, I would not be nearly so tolerant of your  _ blatant _ disrespect. As it stands, I imagine your parents would be  _ very  _ disappointed in your behaviour!”

Clementine’s eyes widened as Jessie jolted back like Carlos had physically slapped her. After a moment of stunned silence, the brunette found her voice. “ _ F _ - _ fuck you.”  _ She stammered, staring up at Carlos with wide eyes.

At long last, Luke stepped in, getting right up next to Carlos, putting a hand on his arm. “Hey, man. That was  _ way  _ outta line. You need to stop, now.”

Carlos stared at him for a moment, the redness clearing from his face. Finally, he sighed and turned to march over to the kitchen door. As he stood in the doorway, he turned back to address the others. “Breakfast is in five minutes. Make sure to wash up in the bathroom upstairs.” To Luke he said. “Talk some sense into that girl.” With that, he closed the door behind him, a bit harder than perhaps was necessary.

With him gone, Clementine turned to check on Jessie. The other girl still seemed shocked at what the man had said. Clementine knew she’d be pretty upset if someone had brought up her parents like that. Hesitantly, she brought her hand up to hover over Jessie’s shoulder. “Hey, are you… Okay?” Jessie flinched away from her hand, and she brought it back to her side regretfully.

“I’m fine.” She said after a moment, keeping her head down. “I’m… okay.”

Luke shook his head, anger written all over his face. His gaze softened as he looked at them. “Look, you guys better go get washed up. Don’t you worry about Carlos. I’m gonna go have a  _ chat  _ with him. Y’all be quick now. Breakfast’ll be ready when you’re done.” With that, he left the room, closing the door gently on his way out.

Clementine sighed. “Are you sure you don’t wanna talk about…” But Jessie was already making her way to the stairs. Without a word, she scrambled up and disappeared from sight. With another sigh, she turned to look at Sarah. The older girl looked like she’d seen a ghost.

“Why… Why would dad say something like that?” She whispered, clearly scared by what she’d just witnessed. “Why would he say something so mean?”

Clementine thought carefully for a moment about how to respond. “He was just angry, I think. People say things they don’t mean when they’re angry.” She thought back to all the times Kenny had yelled at Lee back at the motor inn. They were friends, but Kenny never exactly took it well when they disagreed on something.

Sarah nodded, still looking nervous. “I’ve never seen him like that before… It was scary. I hope Jessie is okay.”

“I think she’ll be fine. She’s pretty tough.”

Sarah sighed, and stood up from the couch. “Alright, let’s go wash our hands so we can have breakfast. I’m absolutely starving.”

“Heh, tell me about it.”  _ ‘That oatmeal was nice, but a hot meal sounds absolutely amazing right now.’ _

Together, they jogged up the stairs, eager to get some food into their stomachs. Despite her eagerness, Clementine couldn’t help but be worried about Jessie. She resolved to keep an eye on the other girl, and have her back if Carlos said anything else. At the same time, she hoped Jessie would change her mind about leaving…

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Getting washed up in the bathroom was a quiet affair. Clementine tried a few times to get Jessie’s attention, and even Sarah tried to help, but the other girl just brushed them off. It was surreal to see Jessie so upset. In the short time Clementine had known her, Jessie had been angry, sullen, annoyed, happy, quiet, and playful, but she’d never seen the other girl like this. She wished she knew how to help her.  _ ‘Lee would know how to make her feel better.’  _ A small, rebellious part of her mind reminded her, but she ignored it. Lee wasn’t here. It was up to her to handle these situations now.  _ ‘Still, how can I help someone if they don’t want it?’ _

Once they finished washing their hands, it was downstairs to the kitchen, where everyone else was already waiting. It had been a bit awkward walking in when everyone was already there, but thankfully some chairs had been left open for the three girls. Clementine took the middle seat, with Jessie and Sarah on either side of her. Someone had taken the time to set out plates for them, containing rice and some sort of meat.

As she poked curiously at the meal with her fork, Alvin explained what they were eating. “What you’re looking at there is venison. Meat from a deer. Luke and Pete got real lucky out there a few days ago, and found a big one. Had a lot of meat on it. Should be enough to last a few more days at the rate we’re going through it.”

Clementine nodded, and started to dig in, glad for a nice, hot meal. Jessie ate at a slower pace, but she could tell that she liked it by the way she sped up slightly after that first bite. It was a bit crowded at the table, but in a way, it felt rather cozy to Clementine. She’d missed having a large group like at the motor inn.

Luke cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention. When he saw that all eyes were on him, he spoke, looking at Jessie in particular. “Hey Jess.” He said softly. “Carlos has something he wants to say to you.”

Clementine’s gaze shifted to Carlos as he sat up straight, eyes focused on Jessie. “ _ Ahem _ . I realize now that what I said earlier was cruel, and not acceptable.” He said in a formal tone. “And I apologize for saying what I said about your parents.  _ However. _ ” Luke groaned at that. “If you are to remain with this group, you must learn to show respect to your elders. I understand it may be hard to believe, but we really do have your best interests in mind, and you need to listen to us.” Clementine rolled her eyes internally.  _ ‘Wow, what a great apology. I’m sorry, but also I’m right.’ _

As she looked to see how Jessie would react, she noticed some of the fire return to the girl’s eyes, her mouth curling into a frown. “I already told you.” She bit out. “I’m not staying.” Clementine could almost hear Jessie’s teeth grinding in frustration.  _ ‘Apparently all it takes to snap her out of her funk is to make her angry. I guess I’ll keep that in mind.’ _

Carlos looked ready to argue some more, but Luke shut him down with a hard look. “Listen, let’s not get into this right now, okay? Let’s just eat, and we can talk about this later when we’ve all calmed down.”

After a moment of silence, Carlos acquiesced with a nod. Jessie just huffed and stabbed at her venison with her fork. Slowly, the mood returned to amiable as everyone got back to their meal, or chatted with their neighbour. As Sarah talked to her about the book she’d given Clementine, and Clementine tried her best not to let on that she’d barely understood what she had read, she couldn’t help but notice Rebecca watching her and Jessie with a sour look on her face.

Eventually, Rebecca decided to give voice to her opinion. “So, first they take our supplies, we let them sleep in long after everyone else was up, and now they’re eating our food.” She grumbled.

Luke put down his fork and gave her a look. “Well, they seemed pretty tired after everything they went through. Figured they deserved to get some sleep. What’s your point?” He asked civilly.

“My  _ point _ , Luke, is that we aren’t running a damn charity here! We can’t afford to have them sitting around freeloading off us. They got what they needed from us. It’s time for them to get the hell out of here.”

Clementine swallowed her mouthful of rice, ready to respond, but before she could get the words out, Pete spoke up. “If you’re wanting them to contribute, then don’t you worry. I was planning to take them with me and Nick to check on the fish traps. Put ‘em to work a little. That sound alright to you girls?”

Clementine nodded, grateful to Pete for interrupting the pregnant woman. Jessie wasn’t so polite about it. “Fine by me. I can probably contribute more than  _ she  _ could anyways.” She said, gesturing towards Rebecca with her fork.

Rebecca’s face twisted in anger. “You little bit-”

“ _ Hey _ .” Luke intervened, looking fed up by this point. “Could you two please try to keep it civil? Please?”

Next to Clementine, Sarah looked out the window longingly, clearly thinking hard about something. Finally, she turned to her dad. “Could I go fishing with the-”

“Absolutely not!” He said authoritatively, causing Sarah to wilt back into her chair. He turned his gaze to Pete. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to take the girls outside like that. It’s not safe.” 

Pete just shook his head. “They can’t just stay cooped up here Carlos. If we’re gonna be taking two more people in, they need to be able to contribute. Besides, if they’ve survived out there this long, I think they’re mature enough to handle it. Me and Nick’ll be there anyways, so they’ll be fine.”

Carlos just crossed his arms, clearly not willing to give in. “No, I won’t allow it. They’re too young. There’s too many things that could go wrong”

“You may be the doctor here, but that doesn’t mean you call the shots. They said they want to go, so they’re coming. That’s all there is to it.” Pete said, with a piercing look directed at said doctor.

Jessie nodded vigorously. “Yeah. You’re not in charge of me. I don’t need your damn permission!”  _ ‘Nice. Way to show how mature you are Jess.’ _

Carlos looked around the table, searching for anyone to back him up, but to no avail. Even Rebecca seemed happy to get Clementine and Jessie out of the cabin. Finally, he huffed. “Fine, I’m washing my hands of this.” He said, gesturing as if to mimic the motion.

Swallowing a bite of venison, Luke looked over at her and Jessie, a smile on his face. “Oh, I almost forgot. There wasn’t time for it last night, but… You might’ve noticed we have running water here? Once you’re done with those fish traps, I figure you’d both like a nice hot bath. I imagine it's been quite a while since you’ve had one of those, huh?”

Clementine froze, stunned at his words. She hadn’t thought about it while she washed her hands, but now she was filled with excitement at the possibility of a nice warmth bath after  _ so  _ long. Unable to contain her grin, there was only one thing left to say…

“Dibs!”

“Dib-  _ Damn it! _ ”

She grinned in victory as Jessie stared at her, mouth agape. The morning had been a bit rocky, but all things considered, it was shaping up to be a pretty good day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while hasn't it. I meant to get this out much sooner, but I struggled to motivate myself to write. I've actually finished all the games now, so I've got that off my checklist. Now hopefully I can focus more time on this now that I know how it all ends. I hope you enjoy this extra long chapter, and I hope you'll leave a comment to let me know what you think. It's what I thrive on!


	6. Gone Fishing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and Jessie embark on a fishing trip with Pete and Nick, and make a terrible discovery. Jessie succumbs to the stress, and everything goes wrong...

**Clementine**

Of course, Jessie wasn’t willing to just accept her loss without a fight. They squabbled for a few minutes as they finished up their breakfast, sniping back and forth while Luke tried to moderate.

At one point, Jessie tried to pull the _I saved your life_ card, saying that Clementine owed her for helping her out in the forest. Her smug grin lasted a brief moment before Clementine reminded her that Jessie had used up that card to obtain her forgiveness for insulting her hat.

As their quarrel progressed, Jessie grew more and more aggravated, while Clementine was simply amused, secure that she’d already won. Just as she thought Jessie would challenge her to a fight over who would get to bathe first, Luke stepped in, saying they could work things out once they got back. Between that and Pete telling them to hurry it up, they were forced to put their argument on hold for the time being, 

And so, Clementine found herself walking through the woods once more, though under much more pleasant circumstances this time around. Pete was leading the way to the river where they would find the fish traps, while Jessie marched next to her, arms swinging back and forth. Nick had been left behind in the midst of a bathroom break.

As they strolled down the old forest path, Clementine took in her surroundings, basking in the serenity of nature for once without worrying about walkers coming to ruin it. Faintly, she could hear birds chirping amongst the trees. The morning sun shone through the pine needles, bathing everything in a faint, orange glow. It was… peaceful.

Clementine was broken out of her reverie as Pete spoke, her mind refocusing on his words. “So, how you girls holding up? I know Rebecca’s been going pretty hard on you.”

Next to her, Jessie shrugged. “I’m fine. She doesn’t scare me.”

Pete chuckled at that. “Yeah, that much is obvious. Y’know, maybe you could take it a little easier when it comes to her? You ain’t exactly doing much to improve her opinion of you.”

Jessie tugged at her sleeve, lips curling into a slight frown. “I’m not just gonna let her push me around. If she wants to pick a fight, then I’m not gonna hold back.”

Looking back on her limited experiences with Rebecca, Clementine thought about the pregnant woman. Sure she had a kid on the way, one that might not even be her husband’s, but that was no reason to be so angry at a couple of kids. “What’s her problem?” She murmured, more to herself than to anyone else.

“She’s got a lot on her plate.” Pete said, having picked up on Clementine’s words. “Bringing a baby into a world like this? She’s gotta be under a lot of stress. You’d be worked up too with a baby to protect.”

Sighing, she shook her head and decided not to think about Rebecca or her baby for the moment. As her mind wandered, her eyes found themselves drawn to Pete’s rifle, wishing she had a gun of her own.

Thankfully, she’d been able to procure the hammer she’d used in the shed for this little trip, after Jessie had put up a fuss about them taking her knife the night before. Now, they both had their weapons back. _‘I guess sometimes her arguing with everyone actually comes in handy.’_ She’d been worried that Carlos would start another fight over them being armed, but it seemed even he couldn’t find fault with them being able to protect themselves out in the wild, though he had reminded everyone that they wouldn’t need weapons if they stayed in the cabin.

Luckily, Jessie had been preoccupied with checking her survival knife to engage in another argument. She seemed happier once she had the knife back in her pocket, and even more so now that they were out of the cabin. _‘She’s probably just happy to be away from Rebecca and Carlos.’_

Pete noticed her looking at his gun, and he smiled slightly. “Say, Clementine. You ever been taught to shoot? And by that I mean taught _proper_. Any idiot with a finger can shoot.”

She smiled slightly at the memory of Lee and her on the train, when he had first shown her how to use a gun. “Yeah, but not a rifle!”

“Well, that makes sense. Less kick. A rifle like this would probably knock you on your ass.” 

Clementine could only imagine what that would be like. Even the recoil from a pistol had hurt her hands at first. A rifle might just break her arm.

He turned to Jessie next. “What about you? I know you’ve been alone for awhile, but, maybe…”

Jessie nodded. “My mom was a cop. She taught me a little bit before… Well, I know how to shoot. I used to have one but… I lost it. Creep knocked it right outta my hands, and I had to run.” She sighed, then shook her head. “I didn’t really use it much anyways. I like to sneak around usually. Guns are… Pretty loud. I Haven’t had to actually use a gun much.”

Nodding, Pete looked thoughtful for a moment. “Well, I’ll tell you what. You stick around for a while, and I’ll take you out with a pistol, see if we can’t get you some practical experience. That okay with you?”

Clementine looked to Jessie, eager to see her response. The brunette looked conflicted for a moment, then sighed. “We’ll… We’ll see.”

As they stepped through a gap in a barbed wire fence, Clementine frowned at Jessie’s words. _‘Why’s she so against staying with us? It seemed like she wanted to, but it’s like something’s holding her back!’_ Before she could voice her question, Pete started talking again, launching into a hunting story.

“Y’know, Nick was about your age the first time I took him hunting.” He said with a nostalgic smile. Brow furrowing, Clementine realized that she didn’t actually know how old Jessie was. They seemed to be around the same age, and Clementine _thought_ that she was 11, but she wasn’t entirely sure. It was hard to keep track of things like birthdays. It just wasn’t that important.

“We came across this beautiful, 13-point buck just standing there on the ridgeline.” He continued, unaware of her wonderings. By now they had stopped while Pete told his story, mimicking the motions as he spoke. “Boy takes the rifle… Lines up the shot, just like I taught him… And then I hear him start whining. He turns to me and he says: _I can’t do it. I can’t shoot it uncle Pete. Oh please don’t make me shoot it!_ ”

Clementine frowned. “Aww, that’s sad.” She said. She’d never really had to kill an animal before. Christa had always done the hunting for the two of them. She’d known they’d needed to eat, but she still felt bad seeing them roast over the fire. She hadn’t even been able to kill Sam, the dog that nearly mauled her to death.

Jessie giggled, not nearly as sympathetic. “Wow, what a wimp!”

“ _Jessie,_ that’s not very nice!” Clementine scolded. If her interactions with Sam hadn’t made it clear, now it was obvious that Jessie had little sympathy for animals.

The other girl rolled her eyes. “ _Geez_ , calm dow-”

Before she could finish, Clementine heard footsteps, and they turned to see Nick running up behind them, looking annoyed at something. “Hey! Why didn’t you wait for me.” He asked, slightly out of breath.

Pete just looked at him. “You want us standing around while you piss on a tree? You know where the river is boy.” 

Nick’s eyes narrowed in irritation as they started walking again, and Pete continued his story. “So, I go to grab the gun out of his hands before the buck can run off, and BANG! The gun fires. Boy damn near gut shot me. And of course the buck got away.”

“What’re you going and telling ‘em this shit for?” Nick cut in, anger building on his face.

Pete turned to face him, bringing the group to a halt once more. “You damn near blew Clementine’s face off yesterday. Seems relevant. Just trying to let her know it’s nothing personal with you.”

Nick’s empty hand clenched into a fist, the other clutching his rifle. “Why’re you always giving me a hard time?” He asked, voice rough and low.

“Cause you’re always giving everyone else a hard time!” Pete said quickly, staring him down

“I _apologized_ already.” Nick insisted. “She accepted.”

“It’s fine, he apologized.” Clementine said quickly, hoping to defuse their argument. She really didn’t want to deal with an argument in the middle of the woods right now.

“Well okay then.” Pete said. “I didn’t know.”

“You’re always embarrassing me!” Nick yelled, not willing to back down.

“You’re doing a good enough job of that on your own!” Pete said, just as loud.

Jessie shook her head aggravatedly. “Could you guys just _shut up_? You’ll end up attracting creeps if you keep yelling like that.”

Nick huffed and started moving, making sure to bump his shoulder against Pete’s as he stomped away. Pete just shook his head. “Leaving us again?”

“I know where the fucking river is!” Nick spit out, not looking back. The rest of them watched as he marched off, anger pouring from his body language.

Pete frowned at his back, then turned back to the girls, finishing his story. “So, anyway. I found that buck later in the season. Shot it right in the neck. Brought it up to my sister’s figuring she’d want to freeze some of the meat… Nick didn’t speak to me for weeks.”

He sighed. "Sometimes… You gotta play a role… Even if it means people you love hate you for it.” He scratched the back of his head, eyes downcast. _‘That’s… Pretty sad.’_

Before Clementine could reassure him that Nick didn’t hate him, Jessie spoke up, looking deep in thought as she did so. “You… You should talk to him. You might think you’re helping him, but you can’t just leave it like that. I don’t think he hates you but… Just talk to him, okay? You never know when it might be your last chance…” Jessie had a serious look in her eye, one different from anything Clementine had seen from her before. It made her wonder if Jessie had experience with this sort of thing.

Pete looked at Jessie, then turned to look out into the woods, hand on his hip. “Nick’s father wasn’t around much, and he was a piece of shit when he was. It fell to me to keep him in line. Raise him right. I couldn’t just be nice uncle Pete.”

“Still, you shouldn’t leave that sort of thing unsaid.” Jessie insisted, still deathly serious. “You… You don’t want to regret it later.”

Clementine watched their exchange, but before she could add her own thoughts, a cry from Nick put her on high alert. “ _Uncle Pete!_ ”

Immediately, the three of them were sprinting down the path, coming out onto a riverbank as they caught up with Nick, who looked shocked by _something_. “Nick…?” Pete started, but he trailed off as they all caught sight of what had Nick so upset.

Bodies. Strewn across the ground, all filled with bullet holes. There was blood everywhere, and Clementine’s stomach twisted. She’d seen plenty of death, but… not _this._ They weren’t walkers, that much was clear. There was little sign of decay on any of the corpses, and the blood was still bright red and fresh, though it was quickly drying in the sun.

“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.” Pete cursed behind her, and she couldn’t help but agree with his sentiment.

Pete walked forward hesitantly, poking at a body with the barrel of his rifle. “Fulla holes.” He said. _‘No shit.’_

“Wh-Who do you think did this?” Clementine asked, stumbling over her words. Jessie walked up next to her, and she could see the other girl had gone white like a ghost at the grisly sight. Her eyes were wide, darting between the several bodies littering the riverbank. Her body language screamed that she was ready to run at a moment’s notice.

Pete looked back at her, and she could see a tinge of fear in his eyes, which didn’t help her own nerves. “Not sure, but it ain’t your average gang of thugs, that much I know.”

Nick stared down at the bodies. “Think about it. You’re Carver, what do you do?” _‘Who’s Carver?’_

“Who the _hell_ is Carver?” Jessie said quickly, echoing Clementine’s thoughts.

Pete and Nick looked at each other for a moment, then back at Jessie. They didn’t answer her question. 

After a moment, Pete turned to survey the area. To Nick, he said. “Check those guys there. And be careful, some of ‘em might still be moving.” Nick nodded, and moved to take a look at the bodies nearest to them.

Jessie shook her head. “Are you serious?! We need to get the hell outta here! Before whoever did this come’s back!” Clementine had never seen her this spooked before. Jessie looked ready to turn tail and run right at that moment. Clementine could relate, but she steeled her nerves.

“What can I do?” She asked Pete, as he knelt down to inspect a body.

He turned to look at her. “See if you can find anything else.”

“Like what?”

“Like what might tell us who did this.” He said, turning back to the corpse.

Nodding, Clementine started to inspect the bodies Nick and Pete hadn’t gotten to yet. The whole time, Jessie remained standing back, scanning the area almost obsessively for any sign of a threat.

After a quick inspection revealed nothing of use, except that each body was shot several times, Clementine stood up. Looking around, she caught something out of the corner of her eye. Looking more closely, she saw that there were more bodies on a small island that split the river down the middle. “There’re more out there!” She told Pete, who looked over to where she was gesturing.

“This wasn’t no rinky dink pissing match.” He said, a grave look on his face.

“What was it then?” Nick asked.

“Fubar.” He said simply. Clementine didn’t get it, but she knew it wasn’t the time to be questioning Pete’s choice in words.

Pete started walking towards the river’s edge, but Nick stopped him before he could wade in. “Where’re you going?!” He asked urgently. “We need to get the fuck outta here!”

“Yeah!” Jessie agreed. “This place is totally _fucked!_ Forget the fish! We need to go!”

“Gotta check the rest.” Pete said firmly. Clementine didn’t know what to do. On one hand, she _really_ wanted to get away from this place. On the other hand though… It would be nice to figure out what happened here, and if the ones who did it were still nearby.

“ _What?!_ _Why?!_ ” Nick was clearly leaning towards the first option. Not that she could blame him.

“Calm down and think about it son.” Pete said, sounding calmer himself now.

“What the fuck is there to think about?! We need to leave! _Now!_ ”

Not wanting to show how scared she was, but not wanting to stay here either, she offered her own option. “Shouldn’t we go get the others?” She asked. Jessie would probably disagree, but she’d feel much safer with more back up.

“I wish we could.” Pete said. “But one of these folks might still be alive, and hopefully they’ll be inclined to tell us just who did this. We gotta do this now.” He told Nick to continue searching the bodies on that side of the river, and gestured for Clementine and Jessie to follow him across.

Sighing, she agreed, and readied herself to use some rocks as stepping stones to get across. Before she could start, she noticed Jessie hanging back, and she turned to face the other girl. “It’s okay.” She started. “I’m scared too-”

“I’m not scared!” Jessie said quickly, defensively. “Really, I’m not!” She continued when Clementine raised a skeptical eyebrow. “I’m just not stupid. Whoever did this might be nearby, and I don’t wanna be here if they come back!”

Clementine raised her hands in front of her. “Okay, I believe you.” She said soothingly, knowing now wasn’t the time to start a fight. “Still, we’re doing this. I don’t think you want to walk back to the cabin all by yourself if the people who did this are still out there, so come on.”

Jessie narrowed her eyes, and for a second Clementine worried that she really _would_ walk back by herself. Instead, she nodded stiffly, and passed Clementine, using the rocks to get across just as she had intended to. Rolling her eyes, Clementine followed, just a rock behind.

“This is a dumb idea.” Nick groused, still looking perturbed.

Pete looked at him from the island. “Well Nick, I don’t like this either, but sooner or later you’re gonna have to realize a simple truth.” He said authoritatively.

“What, that you’re an asshole?” Nick shot back, glaring at him.

“That nobody in this world is ever gonna give goddamn whether you like something or not! You gotta grow up son.”

Nick stared at him, anger in his eyes, and there was a moment of silence. Finally, Nick turned away, muttering a short “Whatever.” As he walked away down the riverbank.

Pete sighed and shook his head, the hard look in his eye replaced by sadness. “C’mon girls.” He said tiredly, turning to address them directly.

“If you wanna be useful, Jessie, keep an eye on that tree-line, we don’t want any surprises coming our way. Clementine, you check out the bodies here. I’m gonna take a look at the ones on the other side of the river.”

Jessie walked away to the edge of the little island without a word, much to Clementine’s surprise. “I’m on it.” She said simply, eyes on the brunette as she stared out across the river.

“Heh, you always so agreeable?” Pete asked.

Clementine crossed her arms. “No.” She said simply.

Pete smiled. “Good. You’ll fit right in with this outfit.” He looked around them. “Just keep your head on straight. Whoever did this might still be around, just waiting to jump the next unlucky fools who stumble across this place.”

A sudden growl made her jump, and they turned to see a body near them come to life suddenly, squirming and writhing in it’s desperation to reach them. Luckily, there was a makeshift spear impaled through it, keeping it stuck to the ground. Clementine observed it carefully. _‘Looks like they killed more than just people… Though they didn’t get this one properly.’_

“Hmm, same deal. All shot to pieces.” Pete reached out to grab the spear as the walker tried in vain to reach him. “Hope this isn’t anyone you know.”

Clementine looked down at it’s rotting face. “No…” She said simply.

Pete pulled out the spear, then quickly plunged it down into the walker’s face, killing it instantly. “Good.” He turned to Clementine. “Alright, like I said. Check these bodies. I'll cross the river and see about those bodies… Maybe go check on Jessie too. She seemed pretty spooked.”

Clementine nodded, and with that, he turned to wade through the river, leaving her alone on the island with Jessie, and a few bodies to look over.

Sighing, she knelt down to check on a couple of bodies that were right next to each other. Nothing, except for the same bullet wounds, and same blood splattered on the ground. Standing up again, she turned to look at Jessie, standing at the edge of the island closest to where they had come from She decided to check up on her.

Jessie seemed to sense her approach as she walked up to the other girl, and before Clementine could say anything, the brunette spoke. “I’m leaving.” She said simply.

Clementine blinked. “What?”

The other girl turned towards her, and she could see the fear in her eyes. “As soon as we get back, I’m leaving.” Clementine could hear the tremor in her voice. For once, Jessie wasn’t trying to hide her fear.

“Wha-what do you mean, you’re _leaving?_ ” Clementine didn’t know what to say. She’d known that Jessie wanted to leave, but she seemed… _really_ scared right now.

Jessie stared at her. “It means I’m _leaving_ Clem. Getting the hell outta here. You should too, if you wanna survive. Just be glad I’m telling you. Part of me wanted to just run without a word.”

“Oh yeah, that’s really thoughtful of you. Thanks for _taking the time_ to let us know before you _ditch us!_ ” Clementine bit out.

The other girl shook her head in frustration. “I’m not _ditching_ you… I’m just… going my own way. I can’t stay here. I was gonna leave before, but now I really need to _get out of here_.”

Clementine just stared at her. “ _Why?!_ Why do you need to leave so bad, and why’re you so scared?!”

Jessie bared her teeth, shaking her head in irritation. “Look, I know you’re not the brightest, but I know you’re not _stupid_ either. You’ve _seen_ everything that’s going wrong with this group. I _know_ you have.”

She growled at the look of confusion on Clementine’s face. “ _Don’t you see it?_ I remember what you said about Rebecca’s baby not being Alvin’s. What do you think’ll happen when _that_ comes out. An-and _sure_ , Nick apologized for acting out and nearly shooting you, but what’ll stop that from happening _again._ ” 

She was picking up speed now, her breaths growing shorter. “Not to mention Carlos and Sarah. I mean, yeah, Sarah’s fine, but what happens when he has to choose between the group and putting her at risk? There’s also apparently this guy, _Carver?_ They mentioned him last night, when they _interrogated_ me. This whole situation here is just the icing on the cake.”

She looked at Clementine with wild eyes. “The cracks are _already there,_ Clementine, and I _can’t_ be there when it falls apart. I won’t, I-I can’t, I… I _won’t… Not again…_ ”

That last part was almost a whisper, but Clementine heard it loud and clear. Still, that wasn’t her focus at the moment. “Jessie…” She started, not quite sure how to respond to _that._ “You… You don’t know that any of that will happen…”

As dysfunctional as the cabin group seemed to be at times, Clementine couldn’t imagine them turning on each other the way Jessie seemed to think would happen. She wasn’t sure what had brought on this little rant...

Jessie gave a bitter laugh at that. “That’s the problem. You. Don’t. _Know._ You’ll _never know_ until it happens, and by then it’ll be too late. Why do you think I want to leave? The dead… The dead are easy to understand. They’re… _Predictable_ . You always know what they’ll do. _People…_ You can’t _ever_ be entirely sure. Doesn’t that _scare_ you?”

Honestly, the only thing Clementine was scared of in that moment was _Jessie._ The other girl seemed almost manic, like some kind of scared, cornered animal. Her eyes seemed to bore into Clementine’s soul, and she could see her shaking ever so slightly, like she was primed to run… Or _fight._

Clementine spoke slowly, like she was calming a spooked animal, which, for all intents and purposes, Jessie _was_ . “Jessie… I understand that you’re scared. I… I don’t think it’s healthy for you to be all by yourself like you’ve been. It’s making you paranoid. You _really should_ stay wit-”

“ _I knew it._ ” Jessie interrupted, starting to pace back and forth. “I fucking _knew_ you wouldn’t understand! You were just _so_ happy to join up with these people.” She stopped suddenly, and whipped around to stare at Clementine. “ _You haven’t seen what I’ve seen!_ ”

Personally, Clementine thought she had plenty of experience with people turning on each other. Instead of saying that though, she decided to be more sympathetic. “Then _help me understand_ Jessie… What… What _happened?_ ”

Jessie froze in place. “What?” She said dumbly.

Clementine narrowed her eyes ever so slightly. “Before… You said _not again_ … I want to know what happened… To make you so scared.”

At once, the wildness started to drain out of Jessie’s eyes and posture, replaced by the glare that had become all too familiar to Clementine. “Nothing. It’s not important.”

She stared at the other girl in naked disbelief. _‘Like hell it’s nothing.’_ She thought to herself. Outwardly, she said. “Jessie… That didn’t seem like _nothing._ ”

Jessie crossed her arms, now glaring at full force. “Well it _was_ nothing. So drop it. I’m done with this conversation.”

Slowly, Clementine started to glare back. “No _…_ _No_ , you _don’t_ get to do that. You don’t just get to say all of… _That_ , and just act like it’s _nothing_. You need to tell me. _Now_.”

Somewhere, deep in her mind, Clementine knew that she should have been more diplomatic. But after being the unfortunate target of Jessie’s little _meltdown,_ she was feeling slightly _on edge_ herself. By now Clementine was mirroring the other girl’s stance, arms crossed and glare on full display.

Jessie bared her teeth, face growing red with her anger. “Listen, _Clementine._ I don’t _need_ to tell you anything. I don’t owe you a damn thing! If you still want to be part of that group, then _fine,_ go and get yourself killed. I am _done_ talking about this.” With that, she turned and marched away, wading through the knee-high part of the river to reach where Pete was.

For a moment, Clementine thought about chasing after her, but she thought better of it. _‘Probably… It’s probably best if we both had some time to cool down. Not that it’ll matter since she’s leaving anyway.’_ Clementine just couldn’t understand why Jessie had gone off like that. _‘Clearly something happened… And whatever it was... It must’ve been pretty bad.’_

Shaking her head, she decided to focus on the task at hand for now. She’d try and talk to Jessie later, at the cabin. _‘If she sticks around that long…’_ Hopefully she’d be able to make amends before she left, even if she thought that most of the fault was with Jessie here.

Spotting a body over at the other end of the island, she started trudging over, only to freeze as a familiar sight came into view… _‘Is that… My backpack?!’_ Gaining speed, she jogged over to it, eyes widening as she realized that the body was that of one of the bandits that had attacked Christa in the woods.

Kneeling down, she was startled as the man coughed suddenly. After a few moments of hacking, his eyes focused on her “Water…” He croaked weakly.

She stared at him. “That’s my backpack…” Another thought occurred to her. “The woman in the woods… The one you attacked. What happened to her?”

He didn’t seem to hear her. “Water… Water…” He pleaded.

Eyeing her backpack, she pulled out a bottle of water. Twisting off the cap, she gently dripped water into the bandit’s mouth, and he gulped it down greedily. “Than… Thank you.” He gasped.

“C’mon.” She said urgently. “Where’s Christa?!” But his body went slack, and Clementine knew at once that he was dead. “ _Damn it._ ” She whispered. “Damn it!” She said, louder. _‘That was my one chance to find out for sure if Christa is alive, and now it’s gone!’_

She was broken out of her despair by the sound of Pete shouting in pain to her right. Standing quickly, her eyes zeroed in on Pete, backing away quickly from a walker as Jessie pulled her knife from it’s head..

“What happened!” She yelled out, forgetting to be quiet in her worry. _‘Oh god, please don’t let him be bit…’_

“Pete!” Nick shouted from behind her. She didn’t bother to look back.

Jessie glanced at her, but said nothing. It was Pete who answered her. “It came outta the bushes. Didn’t… Didn’t see it til it was grabbing my leg!” He shouted. “Another second and… It would’ve got me. You’ve got some damn good reflexes kid.” He said gratefully, turning to Jessie as he panted. She simply nodded, then looked up, eyes widening in horror. A quick glance to Jessie’s right showed Clementine why.

More walkers were coming, drawn by the shouting. A quick glance behind her revealed that they were on both sides of the river. They were surrounded. Pete raised his rifle, only to stumble, hissing in pain. “Shit! I think I sprained my ankle getting away from that lurker!”

Nick was firing his own rifle, killing several walkers as they came. He turned to the rest of them “Get over here! I’ll cover you!”

Pete seemed to disagree. “Damn it! You get your asses over here, _now!_ ” A walker appeared behind him, but before it could grab hold of him, Jessie was slamming into its side, knocking it over. A smooth thrust down with her knife later, and the threat was gone, though there were still many more.

“ _Damn it Pete!_ Just listen to me for once!”

“Hurry up and get over here!”

Mind racing, Clementine made her choice. Deciding that Nick was most in need of her help, she rushed over, nearly tripping as she stumbled through the water. On the riverbank, she dodged and weaved through the walkers, pulling out her hammer in case one managed to grab her. Finally, she was at Nick’s side.

She looked up at him. “What do we do?” She panted, out of breath. He looked over to where Pete and Jessie were, and she followed his gaze, just in time to see Pete waving at them.

“We’ll meet you back at the cabin!” Pete shouted, and before either of them could respond, he and Jessie disappeared into the forest, Pete limping along as he went while Jessie trailed behind, watching out for threats.

Nick looked down at her. “Let’s get the hell outta here!” He said quickly. Fully agreeing with that plan, she nodded, and they made a run for it, Nick using his rifle to clear a path. Finally, they broke free of the swarm, and ran deeper into the woods, still able to hear the moans trailing behind them.

Breathing heavily, Clementine could only follow Nick. She didn’t know where they were going, and she didn’t think that he knew either. They were just putting as much distance between themselves and the walkers as they could. Clementine just hoped that the others were okay... 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go with another chapter! I was really excited about this one, and I hope you'll enjoy it. As always, I hope you'll leave a comment to tell me your thoughts on the chapter, as that's what motivates me to keep writing!


	7. Red Trucks and Strange Men

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jessie and Pete make their escape from the river, but she soon finds out that the undead aren't the only thing hunting the cabin group...

**Jessie**

Her brain on autopilot, Jessie couldn’t tell just how long they’d been running for. All she knew is that no matter which way they went or how fast they ran, creeps seemed to emerge from every shadow and every bush, their moaning a ceaseless cacophony in her ears. What made matters worse was that Pete couldn’t even run properly, his ankle having been sprained back at the river jumping away from a creep that would’ve taken a chunk out of his leg if she hadn’t been there. As it was, he’d lost his gun, rendering him pretty much defenseless.

Eyes searching for something, anything that would help them, she noticed some sort of red delivery truck, left abandoned on an old dirt road. Not seeing any other options, she pointed at the truck, her head turning to Pete, hobbling behind her. “That truck! We can hide in there!” She panted, low on breath. Jessie was used to being on the move, and walking long distances, but sprinting for so long without pause was starting to take its toll on her.

She made a move towards the truck, trusting that Pete would follow her lead. Reaching the back doors, she gripped one of the handles tightly, wrenching it with her unfortunately limited strength. For a moment she feared it wouldn’t budge, the handle seemingly rusted shut, until finally, it gave way with a horrid creak. She pulled the door wide open, scrambling inside and hoping that Pete would reach the door before any creep did.

Luckily, in the time it had taken her to open the door, Pete had managed to catch up, and he climbed in right after her, slamming the door behind him. Not a second later, rotting fists began pounding on the doors, desperate to get at the meal locked inside.

Jessie’s heart pounded as Pete stood hunched in front of the doors, looking out at the creeps trying their hardest to get in. “Well.” He said tiredly. “They shouldn’t be able to get through that.” He slumped down against the wall, groaning as he touched his injured leg.

She nodded. For a moment, she’d thought that she’d lead them into a death trap.  _ ‘It still might be, if these creeps don’t lose interest.’  _ Jessie eyed the man’s leg with concern. It was a miracle he’d been able to run like he did. Still, she doubted he’d be able to handle much more.

“I’ll take a look around.” Jessie offered. “See if there’s anything useful in here.”

Pete looked at her, exhaustion clear in his eyes. “You go right ahead. Not like I’m goin’ anywhere.”

There wasn’t much of interest to be found in the truck. There were some old , opened cans, suggesting that someone had been living in this thing at some point. ‘ _ Whoever it was, they’re long gone now.’  _ There was a hacksaw on the floor. It looked pretty dull, not that it’d make a good weapon even if it was still sharp. Sighing, she knelt down to open a dusty cardboard box sitting on the floor. Inside were cigarette packs. Dozens of them.

Pete looked over at the box with interest in his eyes. “Hey, bring me one a’ those.” She wrinkled her nose, but grabbed a pack. Neither of her parents had ever smoked. At least, not since she was born. She didn’t really get the appeal herself. Any time someone had used one near her, the smoke always made her cough.

She passed it to Pete, who opened up the pack and pulled out a cigarette with the speed and efficiency of someone who’d done so many times before. He paused for a moment, then looked up at her. “You wouldn’t happen to have a lighter, would you?”

She thought for a moment, then shook her head. Her last one had run out of fluid a week ago, and she hadn’t been able to find another before she’d met Clementine.

“Damnit.” He sighed, putting the cigarette back and sliding the pack into the front pocket of his jacket. He slumped back against the wall of the van, then looked over the doors, still shaking as the creeps tried in vain to break through. “Best to get comfortable. We’ll be in here a while.”

Jessie released a heavy breath, then sat down opposite to Pete, near the front seats. She crossed her legs and leant back against the wall, head pressed against the cool metal. For a moment, she thought about trying to sleep, but concern made her turn her head to look at Pete’s leg. She couldn’t see anything wrong with his pants in the way, but she’d heard his grunts of pain as they’d fled through the forest.

“It’s just a sprained ankle. It won’t kill me, not directly at least… Just don’t worry too much about it.” She jumped slightly as Pete spoke, eyes shooting up to see him watching her, a strange look on his face.

She looked away quickly, cheeks heating in embarrassment. “I’m not worried.” She mumbled. “Just… Just wondering if you’re okay.”

“Well, it hurts like hell, but it’s nothing that won’t heal.” He shifted slightly, hissing as he did so.

“Are you gonna be able to move…?” Jessie had no intention of leaving him to die, but his injury would definitely slow them down, if he could walk at all.

He looked down at his leg, and let out a deep breath. “Maybe… But I doubt I’d get very far. I’d need help and, no offense intended, but I don’t think you’re really up for carrying me all the way back to the cabin.”

Shaking her head, Jessie couldn’t find it in herself to be offended. He was right. There was no way she’d be able to support his weight for very long, even if she was fully rested, which she wasn’t.

Pete’s eyes were back on her, that strange look still on his face. “Listen… Nick, he has a watch I gave him a while back. He’s always losing the damn thing. Just… Make sure he keeps it with him, if you don’t mind.”

Jessie stared at him. “Why’re you talking like that?”

“Like what?”

She narrowed her eyes. “Like you’re already dead. It’s like you said, it’s just a sprained ankle. You’ll be fine.”

He let out a deep breath. “Listen kid. I ain’t gonna be able to walk in this condition. This forest is crawling with lurkers. You think I’m gonna be able to outrun ‘em like this?” For some reason, his words made Jessie’s stomach twist.

“So what? You don’t need to run. I can go and get the others while you wait here.” She stood up, checking that her knife was still firmly in her pocket. “I’ll go right now!”

“Girl, I admire your gumption, but  _ sit your ass down _ . Those lurkers are still right outside. You go out there now and you’ll just get us both killed.” She’d heard that note of authority in his voice before, but never directed at her. It made her clench her teeth in anger. She knew he was right, but she was never happy about being ordered around

Huffing, she sat down heavily, crossing her arms and staring at the wall. Finally, she decided to try again, and she looked over at Pete. “You can’t just talk like that. Once things quiet down, I’ll go get help. You’re not gonna die.”

Pete sighed, looking over at the doors. “You’re right. I shouldn’t go giving up just yet.” His gaze shifted back to Jessie. “So, how’re you holding up?”

Jessie shrugged. “I’m okay. This isn’t the first time I’ve been trapped by a bunch of creeps. So long as we’re not too loud, they’ll go away eventually. They always do.” Of course, it might take a while, but they’d leave in the end. Creeps were predictable like that.

His eyes remained firmly on her. “You sure? You seemed pretty spooked back at the river. I mean, we all were, but you really weren’t lookin’ too good.” He paused a moment, seemingly debating something before he finally spoke. “I know you and Clementine got into it over  _ something  _ back there. Don’t worry, I wasn’t listening in. I didn’t hear a word either of you said.” He soothed at Jessie’s dirty look.

“Then how would  _ you  _ know if something happened?” Jessie spit out, gritting her teeth. Just the memory of her little exchange with Clementine was enough to make her blood boil.  _ ‘I explained just as much as I needed to to get her to understand. Where does she get off demanding I tell her about... Forget her! If she wants to die with these people, that’s not my problem.’  _

Her fists clenched tightly as she remembered how the other girl had dared to call her  _ paranoid _ . Paranoid!  _ ‘It’s not paranoia if it’s true!’  _ She thought to herself angrily.

“Well.” Pete started. “You can tell a lot from how people move. You were both lookin’ pretty angry over something. Not to mention that the way you stormed off didn’t exactly scream  _ a friendly chat. _ I know it’s not my business. I just figured you might want to talk about it.”

Jessie scowled at nothing in particular. “Nothing happened. She was just being stupid.” 

He raised an eyebrow at that. “That doesn’t really sound like nothin’, if I’m being honest.” Without waiting for her response, he continued. “Nick and Luke used to get into fights all the time. Luke’d drag him into some dumb shit, and Nick’d get all pissy when things went wrong. Friends fight sometimes. I’m sure it’ll be fine.” He sounded almost nostalgic as he spoke, losing himself in the memories.

_ ‘She’s not my friend.’  _ Is what Jessie wanted to say, but something stopped her. “I told her I was leaving. She didn’t want me to.” Is what she said instead.

Pete gave her a thoughtful look. “Sounds to me like she was worried about you.” He said slowly. “I think that’s pretty reasonable if you ask me.”

Jessie shook her head aggressively, wishing she could just figure out what Clementine’s deal was. “But  _ why  _ though? I can handle myself just fine. Plus, we only just met. What does it matter to her what I want to do?”

“Well, I’m pretty good at reading folks. Have you considered that maybe she cares about you?”

Jessie frowned, not buying it. “She barely knows me. Why would she care what happens to me?” It just didn’t make sense to her. She just wished there was a way to make Clementine see her point of view.

“Well, some people are just like that. They care about everyone. Not to mention that, you did save her life. That’ll certainly change how a person feels about you.” Pete said, somewhat humorously. He looked at her. “I think you care too, y’know. If not about her specifically, then about people.”

She stared at him skeptically. “What makes you think that?” She said, a little bit annoyed at the way he was trying to read her.

Smirking slightly, Pete continued. “Well, I saw you out in the woods, when we saved you girls from those lurkers. You were standing over her, knife out, ready to fight to keep her safe. You wouldn’t have done that if you didn’t care at least a bit.”

Cheeks heating up, Jessie stared down at her feet. “I wanted to run.” She admitted, rubbing the back of her neck.

“You didn’t though. A lot of people would’ve left her, but you stayed.”

Glaring at the floor, she decided to give him that much. That didn’t mean she was ready to give up though. “Okay, fine, but if Clementine really cared, she’d let me leave. It’ll be safer for me that way.” She insisted.

Pete raised an eyebrow. “Safer? Or easier?” Jessie’s face twisted in annoyance, her chin jutting out stubbornly, and Pete sighed. ‘ _ I’m done talking about this.’  _ “Well, I can’t force you to do anything. My hands are full enough keepin’ my nephew in line. I’m sure you can figure out what’s best for you.”

There was something about the way he said that last bit that Jessie didn’t like, but she was grateful enough for him dropping the subject that she was willing to let it go. They remained in silence for a few minutes, until she noticed Pete watching her again. She turned to him questioningly, and he opened his mouth.

“About what you said, earlier… About talking to Nick… I think I’ll take that advice. Having people you care about, and who care about you, was always important… But it’s even more important now. I’ve done my best to make him into a man, teach him right from wrong. Maybe it's time I take a step back, let him make his own choices.” He paused for a moment, then continued. “I’ll be honest with you kid. When I saw that lurker lunge at me, back at the river, I thought that was it. There were so many times when we were running, where I thought I would die. I don’t wanna leave Nick without making things right with him. I see that now.”

Pete turned to her, gratitude in his eyes. “I’d be dead ten times over without you. Heh, never thought I’d get saved by a little girl. Still, I’m not a prideful man. Thank you.” He said, and Jessie nodded, not sure what to say and a little bit embarrassed at his thanks.

After a moment in which she processed his words, she responded. “I, uh, thanks. For saying thank you, I mean. I… Yeah.” _ ‘Really? That’s all I could think of to say? I’m a mess.’ _

As she chided herself, she couldn’t help but notice Pete looking hesitant about something. After a few minutes where he seemed to be debating something in his head, he spoke. “When you said what you did about talking to Nick, it seemed like… You had experience, with that sort of thing...”

He trailed off then, but she could hear the question in his tone. Her first instinct was to deny it, to tell him to forget about it, but something stopped her. Maybe it was because she was tired of keeping it all inside, or maybe she just thought that Pete might understand, but she felt compelled to speak.

“I… Didn’t have the best relationship with my mom… Dad used to keep the peace, but... He died, right at the start, and things just got worse and  _ worse _ between us... I said some real nasty things to her… And then she died, and now I can’t ever tell her how sorry I am.” She looked up at Pete. “I just thought… I didn’t want to see that happen again.”

Releasing a shuddering breath, Jessie brought her hand up to rub at her eye. When she pulled it away though, it was wet, and she realized that she was tearing up. “Damn it.” She cursed, voice watery. “I’m… I’m sorry. I know it’s stupid to be crying like this. I need to be strong.”

Pete frowned, eyes showing a hint of concern. “You may be one of the toughest kids I’ve met, but you’re still young. I think you can be excused a few tears now and again.” He paused, head tilting slightly, then continued. “I’m sorry for what happened to you, though I know that don’t mean much.”

She sniffled, drying her eyes with her sleeve. “It was my fault, and now… I have to live with it. There’s no time to cry over it. I already did enough of that before.” She’d bawled for hours when it happened. It had taken days holed up in an old house before she was ready to continue with the business of survival.

She already regretted bringing it up, hating the feelings it stirred inside her. Thankfully, Pete seemed to understand how it was affecting her, as he leaned back, stretching his arms out over his head. “Well, I suppose we’d better get some sleep. Maybe when we wake up those lurkers’ll be gone. Here’s hoping.”

At once, Jessie remembered how tired she was, and she nodded lethargically, curling up in the corner to see if she could manage some rest. Some part of her mind rebelled at the idea of sleeping when there were creeps at the door, but she pushed it away. She just needed to outlast their interest, and she’d be fine. Stretching her limbs, Jessie closed her eyes, and drifted off into sleep…

* * *

_ “Jessie… Kid, get up. It’s time.” _

Her eyes fluttered open to whispers, and she took in the darkened state of the van. The sun had set. She sat up, fighting back a yawn as she turned her head to the source of the whispers.

“Looks like they finally lost interest.” Pete said, peering out through the back windows. “It’s time for you to get going.”

Jessie nodded, and pulled herself up, stepping towards the doors as Pete turned the handles, pushing them open with a soft creak. She couldn’t see anything through the crack, but she could hear faint footsteps, meaning the creeps were still nearby.  _ ‘Okay, just gotta stay quiet. Hopefully they’ll be stupid enough to not notice me.’ _

“You think you can find the way back?” Pete asked, whispering to not draw their attention.

She nodded once, in affirmation. “Yeah, I’m good at finding my way around, don’t worry. I’ll get back to the cabin, and tell them where to find you so they can carry you back. Just wait here.”

Pete looked out into the darkness, where a creep had wandered into sight. “Once you’re away from the truck, I’ll slam the door, keep their attention off of you. I’ll be safe in here until the others find me.”

“You sure?” The creeps may not have been able to break in earlier, but Jessie still didn’t like the idea of Pete attracting attention to himself like that. Still… He should be safe in the truck. “Alright.” She sighed. “if you think it’ll work.”

With that, she crept out of the truck, dropping to the ground as quietly as she could. Making sure to keep a low profile, she worked her way towards the treeline. From somewhere behind her, a moan rang out, and she cringed. Just as she was about to give up stealth and just run for it, she heard Pete slam the doors loudly. At once, a chorus of moans and groans rang out, and multiple pairs of feet began to shuffle. Not wasting time to look back, she took off in what she hoped was the direction of the cabin, as the sound of fists against metal resonated behind her…

* * *

**Clementine**

Clementine’s heart was racing as she sat in the cabin’s living room, one leg slung up on the couch while the other hung over the seat. Sarah sat next to her, hands on her knees, and a nervous expression on her face. The morning sun shone brightly through the curtains, but it brought no comfort to either of them.

Just half an hour ago, Clementine had made it back to the cabin, having been forced to leave a drunk Nick back at the shed they’d used as refuge when he alerted the nearby walkers by smashing one over the head with a jar of moonshine.

Upon reaching the cabin, she’d found Carlos and Rebecca in the kitchen, who revealed to her that Luke and Alvin had gone out looking for her, Jessie, Nick, and Pete. Once she informed them of what happened, they’d hurried to grab weapons and set out in search of the others, leaving her to watch after Sarah at Carlos’ request.

It had started off well enough, in Clementine’s opinion. She and Sarah had played around with a camera, taking pictures of each other, and she’d even showed the older girl how to use a gun, though it didn’t have any bullets. That all changed, however, when Sarah spotted who she’d thought was Luke in the window. Instead, it was someone Clementine had never seen before, someone who Sarah seemed scared of, though she hadn’t been able to explain herself before he was at the door.

While Sarah hid, Clementine had confronted the man, who walked in without a care for such things as  _ permission _ , and seemed to take for granted that he could tour the cabin while she trailed behind, trying desperately to control the situation.

It didn’t work.

Despite her best attempts to deflect the man’s questions, who it turned out was searching for the people she had decided to throw her lot in with, he managed to find a picture she’d taken of Sarah. He’d left shortly after, denying her every attempt to learn who he was or what he wanted.

Now, she and Sarah were just… Sitting there, while Clementine contemplated their next move. They couldn’t stay. What if the man came back? But if they left, how would the others find them?

Finally, she made a choice. “We need to go find the others.” She said, standing to make her way into the kitchen.

“We can’t go outside!” Sarah protested, though she followed along anyways.  _ ‘Sorry Sarah, but this is more important than following your dad’s rules.’ _

As she opened the door to the kitchen, her heart stuttered a moment to see people walking into the kitchen from the outside, only for her to realize that it was Luke and the others!

“Clementine!” Luke uttered, clearly happy to see her, but her attention wasn’t on him. As Carlos, Rebecca, and Alvin filed in behind him, she was surprised to see Jessie bringing up the rear!

“Jessie! You’re okay!” Clementine said eagerly, their confrontation back at the river temporarily forgotten, lost among her happiness to see the other girl alive and apparently unbitten. She’d been  _ so _ worried when Pete and Jessie had ran off in the opposite direction from her and Nick, but it seemed things had worked out. Still, there was something wrong…

“Where’s Pete?” She asked nervously, somewhat afraid of the answer. She knew Pete had twisted his ankle.  _ ‘Oh god, did the walkers get him? I Should’ve gone with them!’ _

“He’s fine.” Jessie said reassuringly, elbowing past the others to stand closer to Clementine. “His ankle was hurt, but we managed to hide in an old delivery truck. I left him there to find you guys. We need to get ba-”

“Someone was here!” Sarah blurted out, evidently unable to hold it in anymore. Immediately the atmosphere in the room shifted from relief, to fear and concern as everyone reacted to her words.

“What?!” Carlos cried, clearly concerned.

“What did she say?!” Rebecca asked, though the fear in her tone made it obvious she’d heard Sarah just fine.

“Someone came to the cabin.” She continued, clutching her left elbow, eyes focused on the floor. “Clementine talked to him!”  _ ‘Geez, way to rat me out Sarah.’ _

“And you just opened the door for him?” Rebecca said accusingly, turning to Clementine.  _ ‘She seriously thinks I just let him in?! How stupid does she think I am?’ _

Luckily, Luke seemed more willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. “Calm down Rebecca, we don’t know what happened yet.” He said soothingly. “Let’s just hear what Clementine has to say.”

“I didn’t open the door!” Clementine insisted. She was getting more and more frustrated by Rebecca’s bad attitude, and it showed in her short tone “He just came in!”

“She’s telling the truth!” Sarah confirmed,and Clementine smiled slightly, grateful that the older girl was willing to back her up, even with how nervous she seemed to get at the thought of going against the others.

“Did he say his name?” Carlos said, speaking slowly, though it wasn’t enough to hide the fear in his voice. His eyes were wide as he stared at Clementine. “Did he say what his name was?” He said again, more insistent this time, as though repeating himself would make Clementine answer faster.

“Maybe it wasn’t him.” Rebecca said in a forced optimistic tone, clearly hoping someone would agree to make her feel better. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.

“You know damn well who it was.” Alvin said, sounding angrier than Clementine had ever heard him in the admittedly short time she knew him. Such an emotion seemed almost out of place for a man like him, who was normally so cheerful.

“I don’t  _ know _ what his name was.” Clementine said shortly, body shifting defensively at all the questions being slung her way.

Rebecca didn’t like that. “You didn’t ask him his name? How could you not ask him his name?!” She said, arms crossed, her tone dripping with disbelief, which only irritated Clementine further.

“He had a  _ gun _ .” She spit out in an obvious tone, trying valiantly to not lose her temper. “I didn’t want to make him mad. And I did ask his name. He wouldn’t tell me.” The man had deflected every question she asked about him, and she wasn’t exactly in a position to press him, considering that he was an armed man and she was  _ a kid _ , something these people seemed to be forgetting.

Before Rebecca could respond to that, Carlos interrupted. “Look, Clem, just… Can you tell us what he looked like? Anything at all? What was he wearing? Did he sound… Different?” Carlos was clearly trying his best to appear calm, but it was clear to Clementine that he was just as unnerved as the others.

Clementine tried her best to think through the barrage of questions, trying to recall the strange man’s appearance. “He… Had a moustache.” She said simply. It had been one of his most distinguishing features.

“Like mine?” Carlos questioned. “Or more like Alvin’s?”

She thought hard, trying to jog her memory. “Um… It was… Droopy?” It wasn’t like she’d spent much time thinking about moustaches, let alone how to describe one.

Sarah looked up from the floor at her dad. “He talked about  _ you  _ dad… You’re not going to hurt anyone, are you?” She said quickly, tone thick with worry.  _ ‘Wait, did something happen with Carlos before? That’s a weird question to come out of nowhere…’ _

“Of course he won’t, Sarah, all right?” Luke said, reassuringly. “You’re dad’s the nicest man I know, which is  _ why  _ he’s not going to do anything  _ crazy  _ or… Not nice, right?” He looked at Carlos as he finished, and they seemed to have an unspoken conversation.

Sighing, Carlos put a hand on his daughter’s back to reassure her. “You know these are bad people, sweetie. They will do or say anything to hurt us.”  _ ‘Okay, now I’m starting to get seriously worried. What did these people do?’ _

Luke looked down at her, tone calm and even. He seemed to be the only one keeping his cool, aside from Jessie, who was looking increasingly annoyed at the situation. “What do you think, Clem? Do you think he’ll be coming back?”

Shaking her head roughly, Jessie spoke up, evidently sick of listening to everyone else. “Why’re you so scared of this guy? Is this that Carver guy you guys keep talking about? What did you do to piss him off?!”  _ ‘Like she has any right to talk about other people being scared after what she pulled at the river…’ _

Before anyone could respond, Sarah spoke up again. “He saw a picture of me.” She murmured, holding it up for everyone to see, like she was at show and tell.

Carlos’ eyes widened, and he grabbed the photograb out of her hand. “A picture?! What were you doing taking pictures?!” He shouted angrily, the calm facade finally dropping.

“Carlos!” Luke intervened.

“What?!” He said aggressively, staring down the younger man.

“You need to calm down.” Luke said, still calm himself, or at least doing a good job of pretending to be. “You’re scaring your daughter.” Indeed, Sarah looked pretty freaked out. If what she’d said that morning about her ‘punishment’ for helping Clementine was accurate, she probably wasn’t used to being yelled at like that.

Thinking quickly, Clementine tried to deflect the blame from the older girl. “I took the picture.” She insisted. “It was my fault.” It was true, she had taken the picture currently clutched in Carlos’ hands. What she didn’t mention was that Sarah had been the one who shoved the camera into her hands and asked her to take it.

“N-no, I asked her to, it was my fault.” Sarah stammered, surprising Clementine just a little. Then again, the other girl clearly cared a lot about friendship. It was… Nice, to see that Sarah wasn’t just willing to let her take the blame.

“Sarah…” Carlos breathed, clearly disappointed. Closing his eyes tightly, he took a moment before he continued. “He was scouting.” He said, opening his eyes to look around at everyone. “We got lucky, he wasn’t expecting to find us. Clementine must have surprised him. If she hadn’t been here…”

He paused a moment for everyone to take in the implication, that he would’ve found Sarah… Finally, he continued. “...Well, he was too smart to stick around. But he’ll be back with the rest. We don’t have much time.”

Luke nodded, looking around the room at everyone. “He’s right. Everyone pack up. We’re movin’ out.”

Alvin stomped out of the room, a dark expression on his face. “Alvin, wait!” Rebecca followed close behind. For once it seemed their usual roles were reversed.

As Carlos turned to reassure Sarah that everything would be fine, Clementine still had a lot of questions. “What does he want?” She asked, hoping she could get a straight answer for once.

Carlos looked down at her nervously. “To bring us back.” He said simply, like that explained everything. He stepped closer, until he was almost towering over Clementine. “Clem, I don’t know what he told you, but William Carver is a dangerous man. He’s the leader of a camp not far from here, and he’s  _ very  _ smart. We were… Lucky, to escape.”

He turned to Jessie then, and Clementine could already tell the girl wouldn’t like what he had to say. “Listen, I’m sorry you were caught up in all of this, but it’s best that you come with us. If he found you out there,  _ alone _ … He wouldn’t hesitate to take you too. You’ll be safer in a group.”

Jessie scowled, crossing her arms. “You don’t know that. For all you know, the whole reason he’s been able to track you is cause there’s so many of you. If I went on my own, I could probably disappear just fine.”

Carlos opened his mouth to respond, but Luke interrupted him. “Listen, Jess, I know you don’t want to stay with us, but think about it. He won’t chase us forever… Probably. Once we’re in the clear, you can head off by yourself if that’s what you want. For now though, we need you to help us find Pete. Can you do that?”

Biting her lip, Jessie still looked skeptical, but also conflicted now. “I wasn’t gonna leave without helping you find him. I’m not that much of a jerk… We’ll see what happens when we find him. And don’t call me Jess.”

Luke smiled slightly at that. “Alright then… I’ll try to keep that in mind.” To Clementine he said. “We also gotta find Nick on our way out. Do you remember where you left him?” As he spoke, Carlos and Sarah left the room, presumably to pack up.

Clementine nodded. “Yeah, I can show you the way.” Hesitating a moment, she remembered the backpack she’d been forced to leave behind at the river. “Also… Can we stop by the river? I left something there. It’s  _ very _ important to me.  _ Please,  _ I promise it’s not too far off the way.” She pleaded. The picture of Lee, the drawing of Kenny and his family… She’d already thought that she’d lost them forever. Knowing where they were, but not having them… It was driving her crazy.

He must have seen the desperation in her face, because he nodded, sympathy in his expression. “Alright then Clem. We’ll make sure to stop by.  _ If  _ we have the time.” he emphasized, but she knew from his expression that he’d make time for it.

Smiling brightly, she started to think of the best route. “Okay, I think we can go get Nick first, and then go to the river. It should be on the way to Pete, right Jessie?” She asked hopefully.

Jessie just nodded, which made her smile even wider, grateful that soon she’d be able to reclaim her lost treasures.

Satisfied with their plan, Luke called out, loud enough that everyone could hear. “All right, everybody grab your stuff! Let’s hit the road!”

* * *

**Jessie**

Packing up was a short affair. For all their faults, the cabin group seemed to know a thing or two about getting ready to move fast. As everyone got ready, she’d made sure to check Nick’s room and snag the watch Pete had mentioned. No point in leaving it there when they wouldn’t be coming back.

The trek to find Nick was pretty uneventful. Clementine led the way towards the shed where she said she’d left Nick, while Jessie hung near the back, keeping an eye out for any passing creeps that might take notice of them.

She was grateful that Clementine was occupied at the moment. Once the relief of seeing the other girl alive and unharmed had died down, Jessie remembered what had happened at the river, and the resentment returned to her. With them being on the run now, it was just further proof that Jessie had been right. She should’ve walked away at the river and not looked back…

Still, for now she’d lead them to Pete once her turn came up. After that… She didn’t know. She really didn’t want to stay with this group, even if some of them seemed nice… But she also didn’t want to get caught alone by Carver and his people, especially if what Carlos had said was true.

Nick turned out to be fine. According to Clementine, he’d thought that Jessie and Pete were dead, and he’d decided to get very drunk on some moonshine they’d found in the shed they were hiding in.

They found him, very hungover, but alive. He seemed to be in a better mood than Clementine had described as well, joking with Luke like nothing had happened. His mood only improved when he caught sight of her, and she told him that Pete was alive and well.

Immediately he was up on his feet, stumbling a bit, but able to walk. He demanded that they go find Pete immediately.  _ ‘Right, because we planned on waiting a few days…’  _ She’d thought sardonically, but she’d led the way nonetheless.

Of course, they’d had to stop by the river for Clementine’s  _ backpack _ . Jessie couldn’t even fathom the odds of finding it like that. She’d been a bit annoyed about the detour, but even her heart was warmed when she saw the look of joy on Clementine’s face. She’d had to take a moment to remind herself that she was cross at the other girl.

Finally, they’d found the old dirt road the truck was on, and Jessie sped up, recognizing some of the foliage and rocks from when she’d first ran through here. “This way.” She said, leading the way until finally the delivery truck came into view.

Immediately, something seemed wrong to her, and she quickly realized what. The back doors of the truck were left open. Not completely, but just slightly, like someone had shoved the door to close it without really caring too much about it.

Before she could voice her concern, Nick was pushing past her, his hangover seemingly forgotten as he threw open the doors.

Nothing.

Pete wasn’t there.

Nick whirled around to face her, anger building on his face. “You said he’d be here!” He yelled accusingly, like Jessie had purposely  _ lied  _ or something. “Where the hell is he?!”

“I don’t know!” She threw back, her concern growing. “This is where I left him!” His ankle was twisted, he couldn’t have gone far.  _ ‘Why would he leave in the first place?’  _ She thought.  _ ‘The truck should’ve been safe!’ _

“Just hold up there.” Luke said, stepping in. “Alright, you said his ankle was hurt, right? He probably wouldn’t go far. Let’s take a look around before we start panicking, alright?”

Immediately Jessie ran to the far side of the truck, taking a look around for any clue as to where he’d gone, while Nick checked in the truck itself, and the others searched around. Right away she noticed a creep lying on the ground. Quietly, she crept over to it, pulling out her knife and raising it for the killing blow, when she noticed it.

A bullet hole. Right in the center of it’s forehead.

From somewhere behind her, Clementine called out. “There’s a dead walker here! Someone shot it!”

“I found one too!” Cried Alvin. “Someone put a bullet through its head!”

“Me too…” Jessie said, more reserved. “Pete didn’t have a gun though…”

Something terrible occurred to her, but before she could speak up, Nick interrupted her, though his idea was the same as hers. “Oh god… You don’t… You don’t think Carver found him, do you?” he said, voice trembling.

“I… Shit… I don’t want to say for sure, but… It definitely looks that way.” Luke said, clearly wishing he didn’t have to say such as thing.

Nick cursed, starting to pace back and forth. _ “God damnit… Fuck!...  _ What-what are we gonna do? I-I mean, we have to go after him, we can’t just  _ leave  _ him. I-”

“No!” Carlos said firmly. Immediately, Jessie’s eyes were on him, along with everyone else's, especially Nick’s

_ “N-no?! _ What the  _ hell _ do you mean, no?!”

Carlos sighed, looking very troubled by what he was saying. “I’m sorry Nick, but we have to keep moving. No doubt Carver wants us to go after them, but we just  _ can’t _ do that. We nee-”

_ “Fuck you!”  _ Nick roared, in disbelief at what Carlos was saying.

“Nick, fuck man, I’m sorry, but Carlos is right, if we go after-” Luke started.

_ “Fuck you too Luke! _ I can’t believe you’re doing this to me right now!  _ How can you fucking do this?!” _

As the others continued to argue, Jessie blocked them all out. Her blood froze in her veins, and she struggled to keep her breathing under control. Her whole body felt numb. She’d liked Pete, liked him more than she liked most of these people, but that wasn’t all that had her worried.

No matter how hard she tried to keep it out of her head, one thought kept cropping up, over and over again.

_ ‘So this is how it starts…’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Here we go with another chapter! This was originally supposed to be much longer, but I didn't want to just retread the game any more than I already am, so some stuff got cut. As it is I'm still slightly surprised by how long this one turned out to be.
> 
> 2\. We get some more backstory on Jessie in this one! It's still not much, but trust me, this isn't the last we'll hear about it...
> 
> 3\. Pete's not dead! To be honest, I originally planned on killing him off here, but I ended up changing my mind, both after reading your comments and thinking of something better for his character. Of course, just because he's alive doesn't mean he's having the best time right now...
> 
> 4\. As always, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I hope you'll leave a comment to tell me your thoughts. They really make my day!


	8. Story Time, and A New Old Face

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the group travels to escape Carver, Jessie opens up to Clementine about her past. The next day, the group comes across an old ski lodge, where Clementine reunites with a familiar face...

**Clementine**

_4 days later…_

The group had been moving north for almost a week when they set up camp in a safe-looking clearing Luke had found to wait out the night, as the sun was starting to set. It was his plan that they head for the mountains in the hope that they’d be able to lose Carver and his people. Their camp seemed safe enough for the moment. It was surrounded by heavy foliage and rocks that would keep walkers from sneaking up on them. Still, there was always somebody keeping watch, just in case. Clementine certainly felt better with someone keeping an eye out for danger.

Nick had been furious at the prospect of leaving Pete behind, but he’d been given no choice in the matter. Carlos and Luke had been as nice as they could, given what Nick was going through, but they made it very clear that they couldn’t risk the whole group going after the well-armed Carver and his crew. Nick would be on his own, and even he seemed to realize that would be a death sentence.

And so they’d moved on without Nick’s uncle. It didn’t sit right with Clementine to leave him, but when she’d attempted to speak up, she’d been overruled by the adults. It was annoying being a kid. No one ever seemed to listen to her.

Jessie had at least managed to sooth the distraught Nick somewhat, handing him a watch that Pete had given him as a gift. Clementine didn’t understand how Jessie knew about the watch, or where she’d gotten it, but it seemed to cheer him up, at least a little bit.

She hadn’t spoken to Jessie much since they’d gone on the run. It wasn’t like the other girl was avoiding her or anything. It was more that Clementine just didn’t know what to say to her. She’d been thinking more about what happened at the river. What happened back there had left her feeling confused and scared. She wanted to talk to Jessie about it, but the other girl had made it very clear that she _didn’t_. 

As she sat back against a tree at the edge of the group’s temporary home, Clementine found herself more and more _confused_ about Jessie and her motives. She’d seemed so worried when Pete was captured, yet she didn’t say a thing about what they should do. It was like she’d… Shut down or something. Clementine had expected her to leave then, having fulfilled her obligation to lead them to Pete, but when Luke had prompted her to come with them, she’d simply mumbled her assent and followed along. She hung around at the edges of the camp, and each night Clementine thought she’d wake up to find the other girl gone, but there she was each morning.

Jessie had seemed so afraid of groups, and yet she hung around. Why? As Clementine pondered this, she noticed Sarah walk over to her resting spot, and she looked up at the older girl. With a murmured “Hi.” Sarah plopped down next to her, a book clutched in her hands, different from the last one Clementine had seen her with.

“Hey, Sarah, what’s going on?” Clementine asked, noting the worried expression on the other girl’s face with concern.

Sarah adjusted her glasses nervously, looking around for a moment before turning to focus on Clementine. “I’m just… Scared. I don’t like being out here with all the lurkers. And now, Pete is gone…” She chewed on her lip. “I wish we didn’t have to leave the cabin. I really liked it there.”

Clementine nodded, fully able to empathize with the other girl and her fears. She still remembered how it felt when they had to flee the Motor Inn. The uncertainty of not knowing where they were going, the panic of having everything they’d known for months ripped away so suddenly… It was a terrible feeling. “I understand, but you don’t need to worry.” She smiled slightly at the older girl. “We can watch out for each other. That’s what friends do.”

Nodding, Sarah’s fear seemed to lessen slightly at her words, but it still had it’s grip on her. “But what about Pete? If Carver really took him… You… You don’t think that Carver would… _hurt him_ , do you?” Her voice trembled as she spoke, and Clementine wondered if Carlos had said anything about it to her yet.

Having only met Carver for a short time, Clementine really had no idea what he would do. He’d seemed fairly calm at the cabin, but she’d seen enough to know that first impressions didn’t tell the whole story. Not wanting to scare Sarah anymore than she already was, but also not wanting to sugarcoat things, she decided to go for a reassuring answer. “Your dad said Carver wanted to bring you all back to his camp, remember? If he’s trying so hard to capture you guys, then I don’t think he’d _kill_ Pete, right?”

Sarah nodded slowly in agreement, a small smile growing on her face at Clementine’s answer. “Yeah… Yeah, that makes sense. He doesn’t want to kill us or anything. He just wants to bring us back. Pete’ll be okay, I just know it! Thanks Clem!” Her smile faded slightly though, as something else seemed to pass through her mind. “Poor Nick though… He must feel awful right now. I… I wish we could’ve got Pete back.” She eyed Clementine curiously. “You wanted to rescue him, right?”

“Yeah… I did.” Clementine answered, still upset about it. She’d desperately wanted to, both for Pete himself, and for Nick. The grieving man had fallen into a deep depression ever since they’d lost Pete, barely managing to trail behind the group when they moved, and avoiding everyone whenever they made camp. “I can’t believe everyone else just… Gave up on him. Is Carver really _that_ scary?”

“My dad kept me away from Carver most of the time… But he was _really_ scary sometimes. I mean, he was fine at first. He would always encourage everyone, and talk about how we’d survive if we were strong. Over time though, he just got angrier, and _angrier_. He started yelling at people for little mistakes. There was… Other things too, but like I said, dad kept me away from that stuff.” Suddenly, Sarah looked hesitant about something. “Jessie wanted to rescue Pete too!” She blurted after a moment of pause.

“What?” Clementine hadn’t expected _that_.

“Jessie. She wanted to rescue Pete. She feels bad about not saying anything back at the truck.”

Frowning, Clementine thought back to all the times she’d observed Jessie in camp. “I never heard her say anything like that.”

The other girl gave her a look. “Well… You haven’t really been talking to her…”

Clementine flushed at that. “I’ve just been busy with other things.” She said defensively. _‘Yeah, like staring at Jessie from across camp like a creep.’_ Some treacherous part of her mind reminded her.

Sarah looked thoroughly unimpressed at that. “Really? Cause from where I was standing, it kinda looked like you were just… Sitting here.” Clementine didn’t know where this more sardonic side of Sarah had come from, and she wasn’t entirely sure that she liked it...

“I was… Thinking.” Clementine offered, hoping the other girl would just accept that as an answer. Sarah raised her eyebrow in a clear gesture of skepticism.

“Okay… What were you thinking about?”

_‘Jessie.’_ “Nothing.” Clementine insisted.

Sarah tilted her head slightly, a questioning look in her eyes. “Did something happen with you guys?” Cursing internally, Clementine realized that Sarah was proving to be far more observant than she’d originally thought. Perhaps _too_ observant, in this particular case.

Clementine tried playing dumb. “What makes you say that?” She asked, taking care to try and keep her face blank of any emotion that might tip Sarah off to what she was feeling. What she felt was a strange mixture of sadness, regret, and frustration at what had gone down with Jessie at the river that made her stomach twist. She wished that she’d handled things differently, but she still didn’t appreciate how Jessie had blown up at her.

“Well… You never talk to her anymore. You looked like you were getting along back at the cabin, but now it’s like you’re avoiding her or something. Aren’t you guys friends?”

Cringing slightly, Clementine thought carefully about how to respond to Sarah’s words. “I don’t really know if I’d call us friends or anything… We only met just a bit before we wound up at the cabin with you guys. I barely know anything about her.” She said, wincing as she saw the look of hurt in Sarah’s eyes.

“But… We only just met, and we’re friends… Aren’t we?” Sarah asked, a shaky note to her voice.

“Of course we are!” Clementine said quickly, rushing to do damage control. “We promised we’d be friends, so we are. It’s just… I don’t know if Jessie really wants to be my friend like you do. She’s not exactly the easiest to get along with…”

Sarah shrugged. “Maybe you should just talk to her and find out. Look, there she is over there!” She exclaimed, gesturing to where they could see Jessie, sitting on a rock away from everyone else, near the opposite edge of the clearing. Her legs swung back and forth, too short to reach the ground, and she seemed to be staring at the ground. Clementine wondered what she was thinking about.

Biting her lip, Clementine tried to think of an excuse to avoid that confrontation, but couldn’t come up with anything believable. Sarah had been right about one thing. She really wasn’t doing anything at the moment. She’d offered on several occasions to help with chores, but the others had everything handled for the moment, leaving her with nothing to occupy her time.

Finally, she sighed, and gave in. “Alright Sarah… I’ll go talk to her.”

The other girl smiled brightly at that. “I think that’s a good idea.” She sat up straighter for a moment. “Do you want me to go with you?”

Clementine cringed at that. “N-no thanks. I think I should talk to her alone. I don’t think she’d like having anyone else hanging around…” She also didn’t want Jessie to think she was some kind of baby who needed someone to hold her hand, but she left that unsaid.

Sarah just nodded happily. “Oh, ok, I get it. It’s something private. Don’t worry, I’ll stay over here and do some reading. Good luck!” She chirped, making a big show of burying her nose in her book.

Clementine smiled slightly at that, and got up, looking over to where Jessie was. She took a few steps towards her, and was immediately beset by doubt. _‘What if she’s still angry? What do I even say? Will she think it’s weird if I just walk straight over?’_

By the time her head cleared, she found herself standing in the middle of the clearing, near the cooking campfire, currently extinguished. By now, the horizon was tinted orange by the falling sun, and it was starting to get dark. Thankfully, everyone seemed too busy to notice her at the moment, but she still felt like a sitting duck.

Looking around, she pretended to inspect one of their shelters while she steeled her courage. It was nothing much, just a tarp held up into a triangle by metal rods. It would keep out rain, but not much else. Surreptitiously glancing over at Jessie, the other girl still seemed lost in her thoughts, hands keeping her balanced on the rock as she looked down. 

Looking back at Sarah, the older girl appeared to be peeking at her from over her book. When she caught Clementine’s gaze, she gave her a thumbs up and an encouraging smile. As embarrassing as it was, Clementine couldn’t help but be grateful for Sarah’s support. 

Finally, she turned back to her target, trying her best to walk casually so as not to reveal her tumultuous thoughts. Finally, she stood in front of the brunette. Due to Jessie’s position on the rock, Clementine was forced to look up at her, straining her neck slightly.

Slowly, Jessie’s gaze turned upwards, moving from Clementine’s feet up until their eyes met, a quizzical look in her green orbs.

“Hey there.” Clementine said simply. She mentally kicked herself. _‘Really? That’s what I say after not talking to her for days? Nice.’_

Jessie quirked an eyebrow. “Hey.” Their current height difference served to make Clementine feel very small in that moment. It made her wish that she’d waited until Jessie had come down, or that she’d prepared at all before confronting her.

Racking her mind, Clementine desperately tried to think of something, _anything_ she could say to break the ice. After a moment of silence, she latched on to what Sarah had told her. “So…” She began. “You were talking to Sarah, huh?”

The brunette shrugged, gazing down at her with a guarded expression. “Uh, yeah… So what?”

“What were you talking about?” Clementine asked, though she already knew the answer.

The other girl looked across the clearing, and Clementine followed her gaze until her eyes were on Sarah, who quickly pulled her book in front of her face, having been rather obviously spying on them. If Jessie cared that she was watching them, she didn’t show it.

“Lots of things.” Jessie said simply. A huff of laughter escaped her as she turned back to Clementine, a small smile on her face. “Honestly, she did most of the talking. I just kinda… listened.”

Clementine nodded, Happy with the direction things were going. _‘Okay, this is good. She’s smiling. She seems to be in a good mood.’_ She decided to test the waters a bit further…

“Sarah… She told me that you were talking about Pete…” Clementine started, only to trail off as she saw how Jessie tensed up at her words, her eyes hardening as she stared down at Clementine from her perch.

“Really?” Jessie asked, voice monotone.

Cursing herself in her mind, Clementine could only nod. “Yeah. She said… She said you felt bad that you didn’t say anything about rescuing him.”

Jessie huffed again, though not from amusement this time. “Well maybe Sarah shouldn’t go around talking about private conversations. It’s rude.”

Personally, Clementine thought it was rather hypocritical for Jessie to be calling other people rude, but she held her tongue. Instead, she raised an eyebrow. “Did you actually tell her not to tell anyone?”

Mouth open, Jessie stared at her, a faint blush in her cheeks. After a moment, she managed to respond. “I… I mean… _No,_ but…” She crossed her arms, annoyance clear on her face. “She should’ve known better!” She said quickly, though the look on her face made it clear that even she knew what a weak argument that was.

Clementine’s lips twitched, but she suppressed the smirk that so desperately wanted to break free. She doubted such a gesture would improve Jessie’s mood. Instead, she decided to take a more sympathetic route. “You don’t have to hide how you feel about it… I think we all _wanted_ to rescue Pete…”

“I _know_ you wanted to rescue Pete.” Jessie cut in. _“You_ actually said something about it.” She said bitterly, tone almost accusatory.

_Now_ Clementine understood Jessie’s reaction. It was like Sarah had said. She felt bad, maybe even _guilty_ that she hadn’t said anything about going after Pete back at that truck. She’d confided in Sarah about her feelings, only for the older girl to run off and tell Clementine all about it. It probably didn’t help that Clementine _had_ actually said something. It was possible that she actually resented Clementine for saying something when she didn’t. Clementine wasn’t sure that Jessie would appreciate her bringing up that theory however, so she kept it to herself. Still, she resolved to talk to Sarah about spilling the beans on her conversations with others.

“Lots of people didn’t say anything.” Clementine assuaged. “You don’t have to feel bad about it.”

Jessie’s eyes widened ever so slightly, just barely perceptible to Clementine. “I don't.” She said, too hurriedly to be convincing. At that point, the tension seemed to drain out of her with a sigh, and she slumped down against the rock. “It was a stupid idea anyway.” She muttered.

Frowning, Clementine crossed her arms. “It’s not _stupid_ to want to help people.” She said firmly. “It just means you care.”

Jessie frowned down at Clementine, chin now pressed down against her chest as she slumped. “We don’t even know where they are, and _apparently,_ they have lots of guns. It was stupid.” She asserted once more.

Clementine sighed. _‘Maybe I should leave that alone for now…’_ Now, it was time for the _real_ reason Clementine had wanted to talk to Jessie Looking up at the other girl, Clementine waited until Jessie made eye contact to speak. “Can you come down from there? I want to talk to you about something, and my neck’s starting to get sore.”

Frowning, Jessie eyed her suspiciously. “We’ve been talking just fine like this…”

“I told you, my neck hurts. Just come down here so we can talk.” She said, more aggressively than she had intended. Clementine might have been starting to lose her patience, just a little bit... 

Suddenly, Jessie’s look turned mischievous, and she shifted on the rock. “I don’t know…” She said in a deceptively innocent tone. “I kinda like it up here. It’s surprisingly comfy.” _‘Her mood changed fast…’_

Sighing loudly, Clementine looked up at her with wide eyes. _“Please.”_ She simpered, swallowing her pride for the sake of her goal.

With a surprised look and a bark of laughter, Jessie started shuffling towards the edge of the rock. “Well _jeez,_ if it’s that important to you, then fine.” With a slight grunt of effort, she dropped to the ground, feet making a soft thud as they hit the dirt. She winced slightly, the look of someone who’d underestimated the drop, but she recovered quickly. Crossing her arms, she looked at Clementine curiously. “Well, what is it?”

Steeling her courage, Clementine looked the brunette in the eye. “I wanted to talk about what happened at the river…”

Immediately, Jessie’s curious eyes hardened into a glare. _“No.”_ She said simply, as she turned to put a hand back on the rock, no doubt intent on climbing back onto her perch. _‘What is with her and that rock?’_ Still, Clementine couldn’t allow that, not when she’d already sacrificed so much of her pride getting them onto equal footing. Thinking fast, she grabbed Jessie’s arm, pulling her back from the rock slightly. Immediately, Jessie whipped around, murder in her eyes. _“Let go.”_ She hissed, teeth bared.

Clementine glared back, unflinching. _“No._ Not until you promise not to run away.” For a moment, Clementine feared that she’d started another fight between them, one that would draw much more attention than she wanted at the moment. Rather than throw a punch though, Jessie just scoffed.

“I’m not… I’m not _running away.”_ She spat out. Clearly, Clementine’s words had managed to prick at her pride. “I just don’t wanna talk about it.”

“That sounds like running away.” Clementine retorted, not accepting any excuses. She tugged on jesse's arm again. “If you’re not running away, then _promise me.”_

Wild eyes searched Clementine’s face, perhaps searching for a sign that she’d relent, but Clementine wasn’t giving in. She was going to get answers. Finally, with a growl that sounded more appropriate for a walker than a person, Jessie gave in. _“Fine.”_ She ground out. _“I promise.”_ Skeptical, but not seeing any other option, Clementine slowly released the other girl’s arm. For a moment, she feared Jessie would immediately break her word and run off, but she simply leaned back against the rock, throwing an angry glare her way.

Releasing a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding, Clementine took a step back to give the other girl some space, then started in with her questions.

“So…” She began, desperately wishing she’d bothered to prepare instead of just marching over with no plan. “Why did you…” _‘Freak out? Act all crazy? Go nuts?’_ “...Lose your temper like that?” She questioned, opting to be diplomatic in her word choices. At that moment, she was racking her mind to remember all the times Lee had acted as the voice of reason for their group, moderating fights and keeping the peace. Once again, she wished Lee was here with her. He would’ve known exactly what to say…

Jessie’s glare darkened at that. “I only got angry ‘cause you were being stupid.” She said matter-of-factly. “It was… _Annoying._ I _know_ you’re not an idiot, even if you _act_ like one sometimes.”

Clementine frowned slightly, not sure whether to take that as an insult or a compliment. After a moment of thought, she decided on the latter. “Uh… Thanks, I guess? That still doesn’t explain what you were saying about the group falling apart. That’s what I want to know about.”

“Well that’s just _too bad,_ now isn’t it?” Jessie spat out acidly.

Holding back a sigh, Clementine tried her best to stay calm through Jessie’s bad attitude. She wouldn’t get any answers if she let Jessie drag her down to her level. Heck, for all she knew, that was Jessie’s whole plan, to make her lose her temper to avoid talking about whatever it was that had her so riled up. “Jessie, _please.”_ She begged. “I’m not asking because you _have_ to tell me, or because I _deserve_ to know.” _‘Even though I do…’_ “I’m asking because I want to _understand.”_

Eyes widening in surprise, Jessie seemed to reel at Clementine’s words. “You-you wouldn’t understand.” She insisted, anger draining away, replaced with… Fear? Uncertainty? It was hard to tell. Still, it made Clementine all the more determined to get through to her.

“You… You won’t know until you try.” Clementine said, smiling comfortingly. For some reason, Jessie’s cheeks colored slightly at that. Whatever that was about, Clementine knew it was time to reel her in. “You don’t have to tell me everything, if it hurts too much. Just help me understand. I promise I won’t judge you.”

That did it. The last remaining bit of fight left Jessie, though she wasn’t yet robbed of her steel. “Fine.” She said, back straightening. “I’ll tell you. _But.”_ She said when Clementine perked up in victory. “You don’t say _anything_ until I’m done. When I’m finished, I’ll let you ask questions, ‘cause I’m so nice, but if I don’t wanna talk about something, we don’t talk about it. Got it?” Nodding excitedly, Clementine was happy to agree to those terms. Sure she would be slightly limited, but if it meant Jessie opening up, then she was happy to keep her mouth shut for the time being.

By now the sun had almost fully set, bathing the world in near darkness. It was slightly windy, and that breeze served to set the trees and bushes rustling softly, which, combined with the darkness, created a rather spooky feeling that left Clementine unnerved as she looked out into the darkness, only able to imagine what could be lurking beyond the treeline. If any of that bothered Jessie in the slightest, she didn’t show it as she gestured for Clementine to follow her to the other side of her rock/perch, away from prying eyes. Clementine didn’t mind doing it this way if it made Jessie more willing to talk, but she couldn’t help but worry that someone might notice they weren’t around and think they were missing, thus causing a panic. _‘That would be embarrassing.’_

“I’ll give you one chance to back out. It’s... Not gonna be pretty.” Jessie said evenly, peering around the rock to make sure no one had noticed them.

Clementine crossed her arms.”you’re not gonna scare me off now. Whatever you have to say… I can handle it.”

The brunette rolled her eyes. “Fine. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Jessie opened her mouth suddenly… And then closed it. Open, and closed, open, and closed. She did this several more times until she squeezed her eyes shut, and took a deep, shuddering breath.

“Uh… Jessie-”

_“Shut up.”_ Jessie bit out, eyes still shut. “This isn’t exactly easy for me to talk about.” She said bitterly, opening her eyes as the last word left her lips to throw an accusing glare Clementine’s way.

Clementine didn’t take the bait, and remained silent, content to let Jessie work things out at her own pace.

Finally. Jessie seemed to collect herself, and, despite her clear reluctance, began to speak.

“A few months, after the dead started walking around… I was with my… Mom. Dad died when it all started, so we were all alone.” As she spoke, Jessie seemed to choke up slightly at the mention of her mother. Although Clementine could understand what she was going through, she knew better than to say anything.

“Eventually, though… We found a camp. It was a big one, with a lot of people. I never really kept count, but there must’ve been over a hundred. They’d walled off a whole section of town, and they seemed to be doing pretty well, so mom asked if we could join them.”

Jessie furrowed her brow slightly. “I… I mentioned my mom was a cop right?” Clementine nodded, and she continued. “They were happy to have her experience. I think she liked it, being able to sort of… Do her job again. She’d always liked being a cop.”

Smiling sadly, Jessie seemed almost lost in the memories. “It was nice, at first. Everyone got along, and there were kids my age, so I wasn’t bored or anything, even if they didn’t really like me. People were working together, and it really seemed like we’d all survive. There weren’t even all that many creeps around.”

Slowly, her smile dissolved. “It didn’t last though… Slowly… Things just started to go wrong. Not enough food… Not enough water. There were just so many of us… We went through that sort of stuff fast. We lost some people searching for supplies, and that just made everything worse. Still, people thought we could get through it, until…”

For a moment, she seemed to freeze, shivering slightly as the memory through her mind. Clementine coughed impatiently, and that seemed to snap Jessie out of it. 

“Right… _Right_ … One day… There was an argument. I didn’t get there fast enough to hear what started it. There were these two guys, Eric, and Calvin. They never really got along. I think Eric accused Calvin of stealing his rations or something. Whatever it was… Things escalated quick. Calvin told Eric that he was being paranoid, and that he was… Errr… _“Enough of a fat fuck to miss a meal anyways.”_ I think he said.”

Clementine’s eyes widened slightly, but other than that, she wasn’t really fazed at the language. She’d heard plenty of stuff like that at this point. Too much to really care anymore.

“Calvin turned to walk away and… Eric just… Pulled out a gun and shot him. Right in the back of his head, like it was nothing. The worst part was how _emotionless_ he was. Before, he was all angry and red-faced, but when he pulled that gun out… It was like flicking a switch or something. He didn’t even fight back when my mom and a couple other guards took his gun and tied him up. No one was really okay with killing yet, even a few months in, so we ended up banishing him. I never saw him again, but… Things changed after that.”

“People didn’t really trust each other after that.” Jessie said with a sigh. “Slowly… They started splitting into groups. Families with families, friends with friends, and they stuck with those groups. It didn’t happen right away. It took weeks, but it eventually got to the point where people would barely talk to anyone outside their group, and when they did, it was usually an argument. My mom tried to keep the keep, working with everyone, but not joining a group just meant that nobody trusted her. She kept me away from everything, but I could tell that things were different. I mean, I didn’t really get along with most of the kids there anyways, but now their parents wouldn’t even let them talk to me… And of course, we had less and less food, and people got more and more desperate… Eventually, all that tension… _Exploded.”_

“I woke up one night to the sound of a bunch of people arguing. Mom wasn’t in the tent, so I went out to see what was going on. There were so many people yelling, it was hard to tell what they were even angry about, but I think some people were trying to steal our supplies and leave. I guess they were sick of everything that was going on, so they decided to head off on their own. They could’ve just left, and found their own stuff, but nope, they wanted to take everything with them.”

Jessie’s voice grew quieter and quieter, until it was nothing more than a whisper, forcing Clementine to strain her ears to hear the other girl.

“More people started to show up, and they started arguing too. All of them sticking to their groups, I don’t… I don’t know _who_ fired the first shot… But it was a bloodbath. So much _screaming,_ and so many people who _fell_ and didn’t get up. I just froze… I didn’t know what to do. The next thing I knew, my mom was pulling me by the arm, telling me that we were leaving. She took me out a side entrance, one that only the guards used. I could still hear shooting as we left, but we didn’t look back. We just _ran.”_

Jessie gave a bitter chuckle. “It’s funny… So many people dead, and not a creep in sight. That’s why I wanted to leave, Clem. People aren’t safe to be around. No matter how nice they might seem at first… No matter how much you trusted them… You’ll never be able to know if they’ll turn on you, until it’s too late.”

Seeing that Jessie was finished, Clementine finally allowed herself to speak. “I… Jessie. That sounds horrible. I’m so sorry…”

“Sorry for what?” Jessie asked dismissively. “You didn’t do anything.” After what had just been said, Clementine couldn’t help but hear an unspoken _yet_ in there.

“We stayed on our own after that.” Jessie said suddenly, surprising Clementine, who’d thought she was done. “It’s safer that way. You’d do it too, if you’d seen what I did.”

“Jessie…” Clementine started, hoping that what she was about to say wouldn’t set Jessie off again. “Just because you had a bad experience doesn’t mean that all people are like that. I’ve met bad people before… But I’ve also met a lot of good people. People who helped me survive. You can’t just give up on everyone before you even meet them.” She espoused.

Jessie just shook her head, a deep frown growing on her face. “I should’ve known you wouldn’t understand…” 

“I _do_ understand!” Clementine insisted, louder than she’d intended. For a brief moment, they both stood still, fearing that someone might’ve heard her, but no one came. “I do understand.” Clementine said again, quieter. “I just don’t think it’s right…”

“Well, you can _think_ whatever you want.” Jessie snapped, a sharp look in her eyes. “I know better.”

Suddenly, Luke’s voice rang out in the distance, hollering for everyone to get to bed now that the sun had set. Both of their heads snapped around to face the noise, and Jessie frowned. “Why is that idiot shouting?” She asked rhetorically, in a tone that made it clear she wasn’t impressed. With a sigh, she turned to head in the direction of the voice. Watching Jessie as she left, Clementine thought back to Jessie’s earlier choice of words, and she called out just as Jessie was about to disappear around the side of the rock.

“Wait!” Clementine said, hand reaching out. Jessie paused, and turned to look back, annoyance written all over her face.

“What now?” She groused.

“Earlier, you said that you’d _wanted_ to leave. Does that mean you don’t want to leave anymore?” Clementine, asked, surprising herself with her hopeful tone. She couldn’t explain it, but despite how frustrating Jessie could be, she really wanted the other girl to stick around.

Jessie immediately crushed that hope. “Don’t get your hopes up.” She said. “Once I know that Carver guy won’t find me, I’m leaving.” And with that, she marched off. 

Sighing, Clementine trudged after her, thoroughly exhausted after the stressful conversation she’d had.

As she curled up in her blankets, Clementine couldn’t help but think back on what Jessie had said. To say that her words had chilled her to the core was an understatement. She’d dealt with infighting before, but nothing as bad as what Jessie had described.

Soon, her thoughts turned to her current group, as she wondered whether Jessie had a point about them. The more she thought about it though, the more reassured she felt. After all the time she’d spent with these people over the last week, she’d seen how they supported one another. Sure, they might not be as experienced at survival in the wild as her or Jessie, but they truly cared about one another. _‘No.’_ Clementine thought to herself. _‘Jessie doesn’t know what she’s talking about.’_ Maybe the other girl was blind to it, but Clementine knew that this group would never turn on each other. Things would be tough, but Clementine couldn’t help but feel optimistic that her luck had finally changed.

Satisfied with her conclusion, Clementine laid her head down to sleep, knowing she’d have another long day of walking ahead of her when she woke up...

* * *

**Jessie**

_The next day…_

They’d been trekking through the woods for most of the day when they’d come to a ridge, overlooking a large valley, bordered at the far side by the beginnings of a mountain. As one would expect, the terrain had become increasingly difficult to navigate as they’d gotten closer to the mountains, slowing them down considerably, and leaving everyone weary from exhaustion. The only breaks they’d had were short, a time to rest their legs and eat what little food they had left after five days of constantly being on the move.

Jessie tried her best to ignore the pang in her stomach, knowing all too well that there was nothing she could do about it. Luke and Carlos had vetoed any attempt at hunting, worried that a gunshot would bring unwanted attention on them. They’d tried their hand at foraging, but the few berries they’d managed to find - at least, the ones they knew were edible - didn’t exactly fill their stomachs. It was times like this that Jessie wished she’d paid more attention to those survival shows her father had loved so much.

Her father had worked at a local high school, teaching english. Survivalism was more of a hobby for him, but it was one he’d loved dearly. Maybe it helped him feel like more of a man, or maybe he just longed for adventure, seeing that they’d lived in the city, away from any hint of wilderness.

She would be at the kitchen table doing homework, her mom reading in the corner, keeping up her post to make sure Jessie actually did the work, and her dad would come in, all excited over the latest technique he’d learned, or gushing about ways to ward off wild animals from your food. Jessie would smile at him, both because she loved talking with her dad, and because it was an opportunity to put off her work by pulling him into a conversation. Her mother would shake her head at them, but she’d let him carry on.

_‘And now I just made myself sad.’_ Jessie thought to herself with a sigh, remembering how her dad had always talked about wanting to make some big camping trip where he could put all he’d learned to the test. Of course, they’d never actually made it a reality… And now they never would… Sometimes, Jessie would try to make herself feel better by telling herself that she was living the dream her dad had always talked about, surviving on her own, without any civilization to lean on. Sometimes, it worked, but mostly it just gave her a hollow feeling in her chest, knowing in her heart that it wasn’t the same without him…

Still, she’d managed to survive so far. All she could do know was hope that he’d be proud of her.

At the moment, Jessie was watching the treeline they’d just emerged from, keeping an eye out for any creeps that might happen to wander by. It was a task she’d taken upon herself when it became clear that no one else was interested, all of their attention currently focused on Clementine, who was busy surveying the path forward from the vantage point of a large rock overlooking the valley.

Despite that, Jessie made sure to keep an ear out for the conversation happening behind her, not wanting to be left out of the loop. Apparently, there was a ski lodge atop the mountain, and a bridge that would hopefully take them there. She couldn’t deny that the thought of having a roof over her head and four walls to protect her was appealing, even if her survival instincts cried out in protest against spending the night in such an obvious and visible target for anyone else who happened to be in the area. A quick glance behind her revealed Clementine clambering down from her perch, as the others discussed their plan.

Luke wanted to scout ahead to make sure the way was clear. It was a smart plan, and it proved that at least they weren’t totally inept. Jessie was about to volunteer for the job, until Luke mentioned that he and Clementine would handle it.

_‘Oh god. Here we go.’_ Jessie groaned internally, waiting for the inevitable objection from Carlos, which came not a moment later. He was nothing if not predictable. Now Jessie was glad she hadn’t spoken up. She wouldn’t have given in to his demands, but dealing with him would’ve definitely gotten her temper up.

She could understand why Luke would want to bring Clementine. She may act like an idiot sometimes, but if what she’d pulled that first night at the cabin was any proof, she knew how to take care of herself, despite Jessie’s playful insinuations otherwise.

Now Nick was chiming in, offering to go with them, which Luke turned down, much to his consternation. While Jessie could sympathize with Nick about people thinking they couldn’t handle themselves, she couldn’t help but agree with Luke’s choice. Even if Nick wasn’t still reeling from the loss of Pete, it was best to keep the scouting party as small as possible to avoid unwanted confrontations.

Carlos made one last comment, and Jessie couldn’t help but smile at Luke’s response. “Yeah, well, when’s the last time you liked anything Carlos?” Luckily, she was turned away, so no one could see the look on her face.

Nick made one last offer to cover them, but Luke and Clementine were already walking away, leaving him to sulk at his dismissal.

A few minutes passed by, and Jessie was starting to get bored as she realized that there were no creeps nearby. A part of her wanted to head over and try to strike up a conversation, but a quick glance back put paid to that idea. Her first choice was Sarah, but she was staying close to Carlos at the moment, and Jessie had no intention of trying to talk to her with her dad hanging over them. She’d talked to Alvin a few times on their journey, and found him to be fairly pleasant company, if rather distracted with his wife’s condition, but he seemed focused on Rebecca at the moment. Sighing, she resigned herself to a long and boring watch when she heard footsteps from her right. Turning, she watched as Nick sidled up next to her, a dark look on his face.

“Uh… Hi.” She offered, not sure what else to say. Nick just offered a grunt in reply. “I thought you were gonna cover them.” She said pointedly, hoping he’d take the hint to leave and do his own thing. Unfortunately, he seemed to take it as an invitation to complain.

“It’s like they don’t even trust me anymore!” He whined suddenly, eyes scanning the forest in a manner that Jessie knew was too fast to actually take in anything. “I can handle a gun. I can look after myself, but they keep treating me like an idiot. I mean, Luke would rather take a _fucking kid_ to help him over me!” If Nick realized that he was currently talking to a _fucking kid,_ as he’d put it, he didn’t show it.

“Well… You’re kinda proving his point right now.” Jessie pointed out. When Nick just stared at her dumbly, she continued. “You said you’d cover them, but instead you’re over here whining. If you want them to trust you, you should actually do what you said you’d do.”

For a moment Nick just stared at her, and Jessie thought she was about to get an earful. Instead, he simply sighed. “Shit… I guess you’re right. It’s just… Do you have any idea what it’s like, having your best friend treat you like some kind of fuck-up?”

Jessie just shook her head, unable to relate. Of course, that might’ve had more to do with the fact that she’d never really _had_ a best friend, but she didn’t mention that.

“Well it fucking sucks, okay?” For a few moments, they stood in silence, watching the trees as their branches swayed gently in the breeze. Finally, Nick turned to her. “Hey… I don’t think I thanked you for giving me that watch. How’d you even know to take it anyway?”

“Pete told me about it.” Jessie answered honestly. “He asked me to make sure you didn’t lose it.”

To her surprise, Nick gave a harsh bark of laughter at that. “Of fucking course he did… Old man never did think I could manage anything on my own. He was always on my ass over something…” He sighed deeply. “I… I wish he was here. I always wished he’d let me do my own thing, but now… I don’t even know what to do without him.”

Biting her lip, Jessie offered her condolences. “I’m sorry about what happened with Pete. Maybe… Maybe if I’d gotten us there faster-”

“Don’t even start with that. It wasn’t your fault he got nabbed. Hell... I saw you back at the river. If you hadn’t been there… He probably would’ve been dead. Thank you.” Nick said earnestly, surprising Jessie. 

Another silence took hold, though this one was more genial, until, with a sigh, Nick pulled his rifle from its place at his back, and into his hands. “Say, you wanna come keep watch with me? I don’t think there’s gonna be any lurkers here, and you haven’t seen the view from the ridge yet. It’s a pretty nice sight.”

Surprised at his turn around, Jessie was conflicted for a moment. On one hand, she really didn’t want to leave her post, in case something did show up, but on the other hand… Maybe she’d be more useful keeping an eye on Clementine and Luke. After a moment of indecision, she nodded her head. “Okay… But just for a bit.” Nick nodded, and they trudged over to the ridgeline together.

Looking down at the valley, Jessie’s eyes were immediately drawn, not to the beauty of the valley or the river running through it, but to the old railway bridge, where they soon locked onto the distant forms of Luke and Clementine. Judging by their body language, and what appeared to be corpses at their feet, it looked like they’d just finished up a fight. Luckily, no one seemed to be bitten. Her gaze continued to follow them down the bridge, until a hand on her shoulder made her look up.

“You see that?” Nick said tersely, clearly agitated by something. As she followed his gaze, the reason for his distress became _very_ apparent. Blood running cold, Jessie could only stare at the unmistakable shape of a man wielding a rifle, making his way from the other end of the bridge, towards their scouts.

_‘What does he want?’_ Jessie thought, mind racing. _‘Don’t they see him coming? What are they doing?!’_ She was pulled out of her thoughts as the hand on her shoulder began to tug her away from the ridgeline. “Come on.” Nick said quickly, clearly worried. “We need to get down there _now.”_ He started to run, and, Jessie, for once obeying an order, followed close behind. As they moved, Nick barked at the others to stay put, and soon they were racing down the trail, towards the bridge.

Soon, grass and dirt gave way to wood and metal as they found themselves on the bridge, moving left and right to avoid a large hole in the middle of the path. Their footsteps thudded dully against the steel and wood, and Jessie nearly tripped over the rails several times as they ran.

As they drew closer, Jessie could see that Clementine and Luke were now standing in front of the man, his rifle cradled in his arms, and a moment later, the man took notice of them, raising his rifle as her group mates turned to face her and Nick as they approached. Cursing her foolishness for running out without any means of defending herself beyond a knife, Jessie tried to keep her head down as Nick raised his own rifle in response, not saying a word as he concentrated on his aim. By now, Clementine and Luke had started to shout.

As she waited for the inevitable sound of gunfire, Jessie’s brain started to take notice of some things. For one, Luke and Clementine hadn’t actually seemed all that worried before they approached, though maybe they were just playing it cool. Secondly, the man hadn’t been pointing his rifle until she and Nick had arrived. Thirdly, as she strained her ears, she finally took note of what they were saying.

_“Nick! No!”_ Luke shouted, and everything clicked into place for Jessie. Luke and Clementine had just been talking to this strange man, and now, because of her and Nick jumping the gun, someone was about to die. Thinking quickly, Jessie knew she only had a few seconds to act. Finally, she made her choice.

Knowing that words wouldn’t be enough to stop what was about to happen, she threw herself at Nick, slamming into his hip with all the force she possessed. Caught off guard, he tumbled to the ground with a storm of curses, pulling the trigger as he fell. The shot echoed for miles, and her ears rang at the proximity, even as Nick tried to bring his gun to bear once more from his place on the ground. Jumping, she pinned the rifle to the ground with her knees and hands, even as he stared at her in disbelief. By now, Luke had ran over to them, anger written all over his face.

_“Nick!_ What the hell was that?!” Luke questioned angrily, With a yelp, Jessie fell back as Nick pulled the gun out from under her. He stood up, only for Luke to yank the rifle from his grip.

“What the hell man?!” Nick said, eyes wide in disbelief.

“You could’ve shot one of us! What the hell were you thinking?!” Luke fired back. By now, Clementine had reached them, followed by the man they had been talking to. Now that she was closer, Jessie could see that he was an asian man, with black hair, a small mustache and beard, and a grey hoodie. His rifle was held tightly in his hands. No doubt he was ready to use it at a moment's notice after what Nick had just done. Jessie stood up, wary of this stranger.

“I was trying to help!” Nick cried, clearly not willing to give up just yet. “He could’ve killed you guys!”

“He was offering us food.” Clementine insisted. Nick glared at her, no doubt peeved that she was contradicting his narrative. To be honest, Jessie was rather suspicious herself at this strange man, but bringing that up right now wouldn’t help anything.

“Jesus.” The strange man said, and Jessie noticed that he was breathing heavily, no doubt filled with adrenaline after his near death experience. “Is this how you people treat strangers?! He nearly fucking killed me!”

“No, _no.”_ Luke said quickly. “I _swear,_ he’s just, he’s been having a real bad time recently. We, we just lost his uncle about a week ago. We’re good people, I swear!”

The man looked at each of them, justifiable wariness in his eyes. Sighing, Jessie decided to offer her two cents. “We thought you were gonna hurt our friends. We just wanted to keep them safe.”

After a moment or two of agonizing silence, he nodded. “Yeah… Yeah, I can understand that. I guess not everyone you meet out here is gonna be friendly. Yeah… I can see how a stranger with a gun might make you a bit… _Nervous.”_ He turned back to Luke. “Well, I offered you food, and I’m not gonna go back on that now. Just… Keep your friend under control. I won’t mention this to my people, just make sure it doesn’t happen again.” He said authoritatively. _‘His people?’_ Now _that_ made her a bit nervous.

With a sigh, Luke turned towards Nick, who was looking anywhere but him. He squinted slightly, and Jesiie followed his gaze to see the rest of their group, waiting at the edge of the bridge. _‘So much for staying put…’_ He cursed under his breath. “Alright. I’m gonna go let them know what’s going on. Nick, _you come with me._ Girls, you stay here.” With that, he marched off, Nick following behind.

Watching as they left, Jessie sensed movement from behind her. Turning around, she found the man looking down at her. “Hey, uh… I just wanted to say. Thanks for doing that. That was pretty brave for a kid. Name’s Matthew.” He said, a small smile on his face.

Wrinkling her nose slightly at the _for a kid_ part of his sentence, Jessie reciprocated with her own name. He nodded, and they watched as Luke brought the others over. “Huh…” He said quietly. “Not sure if I have enough food in the station for all of you… Oh well, you’d have to pass by the lodge anyways. I’m sure we can get you some supplies up there, once I talk to my people. They’re real friendly, I promise.” he said as Jessie gave him a skeptical look.

To say Jessie was suspicious would be an understatement. Jessie couldn’t see why anyone would just give away free food, and it made her wonder at what other motives he and his people might have… 

Still, for the moment, there was nothing she could directly do about it. Instead, she resolved to keep an eye on Matthew. Luke and Clementine might trust him, but that didn’t mean she had to. Not until she was sure that he or his people wouldn’t try anything against them…

* * *

As it turned out, his offer of food was legitimate at least, even if there really wasn’t enough for everyone. The lion's share had gone to Rebecca, on account of her pregnancy. Her stomach had grumbled, but Jessie knew better than to complain about it. They’d barely had time to eat when a group of creeps, no doubt drawn by the earlier gunshot, started coming across the bridge. Moving quickly, Matthew led them up the mountain trial, to the ski lodge where the rest of his group was located.

Part of Jessie wondered why he was hanging out on his own by the station, but she’d answered her own question when she realized that, in his place, she’d probably want a place to herself as well.

Nick was sulking again. Jessie couldn’t tell if he was upset because Luke and the others were angry at him for almost shooting Matthew, or because he’d nearly shot Matthew. He hadn’t been willing to talk to Jessie, no doubt still sore over her interference, so she had no way of knowing. She’d seen him talking to Clementine, and so she decided that she’d just ask her about it later.

As they stepped up onto the front deck of the lodge, the only door not boarded up swung open, and an indian woman in a blue jacket walked out, looking curious but not overly surprised at their presence. That confirmed in Jessie’s mind that this wasn’t the first time Matthew had brought guests home. The only question was, were they really guests, or victims? As the woman greeted them and Jessie studied her for any sign of subterfuge, two more people came out, a balding man in a red sweater, and an old, heavily bearded man with a green jacket and a trucker hat, who had a rifle in his hands.

Red Sweater introduced himself as Walter, while the woman revealed her name to be Sarita. The final man wasn’t quite as friendly. “Who are you people?” He asked sharply, squinting at them. “What do you want?” She could respect his suspicion, even if it rankled to have his sharp tone directed at her. What happened next though, was something she never could’ve imagined.

The moment the man began to speak, Jessie noticed Clementine perk up behind her, a look of undisguised shock on her face. Moving quickly, she pushed her way to the front of the group, shoving aside Jessie, who grumbled and pushed back, only to stare in shock at what she saw happening in front of her.

“Kenny…?” Clementine breathed, making Jessie’s mouth drop open as she realized that Clementine somehow _knew_ this man.

“Clementine?” The man said back, looking equally as shocked. At least now Jessie could be somewhat sure that these people weren’t bandits at any rate, if Clementine knew one of them. As Clementine rushed forward to hug the man, now known as Kenny, Jessie realized that things had just gotten a whole lot more interesting...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Okay, so... Been a long time. I'm very sorry. I've just been busy with some other things. University is starting soon, so I've been preparing for that, and I've also been getting into new fandoms. Add in the release of Crusader Kings 3, and I haven't really had much free time left. 
> 
> 2\. We learn some more about Jessie in this one. It's not the most pleasant details, but it is very important to her character and why she's the way she is. We also see the return of one of the fandom's most beloved characters. I'm sure you know who I'm talking about. We also get some more screen time for Sarah and Nick, which I think is important.
> 
> 3\. I hope you enjoy the chapter. I think it's a bit rushed towards the end, but I haven't updated in so long, I wanted to get this out there. As always, I hope you'll leave a comment to tell me your thoughts, and I hope you'll stick around for the next one!


	9. The Lodge Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An old friend by her side, Clementine and company find themselves a sanctuary for the night. Conversations are had as Clementine learns more about the people around her, and tries her best to enjoy a night of relative safety. Will this calm last?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. As you can see, this is just part one of the group's time at the ski lodge. I originally planned to get it done all in one chapter, but I realized as I was writing that it would end up way too long if I didn't split it. I hope you'll enjoy this first part anyway. The second will be coming in due time, so long as I can keep up this writing streak I've been on.

**Clementine**

As she walked through the front door of the ski lodge, currently held open by the balding, red sweatered man who had introduced himself as Walter, Clementine was lost in a trance, absolutely giddy at the reunion she had just experienced.

Walking next to her was Kenny, a man she had thought for certain had died in Savannah like so many others she had known. So lost was she in her glee, that she barely registered Walter’s words as he explained how Kenny and Sarita had come to the lodge several weeks ago, and how they had plenty of  _ food,  _ and even  _ electricity,  _ from a wind turbine of all things! If she didn’t know better, she’d have thought she was  _ dreaming _ from how perfect things seemed!

The lodge was all done up with strings of lights wound tightly around wooden pillars, and the warm glow of a fireplace, all lit up in the corner. Everything was so  _ clean  _ and inviting, you could almost fool yourself into thinking most of the world wasn’t in ruins. There was even a christmas tree! Clementine couldn’t even remember the last time she’d  _ seen  _ anything like all of this, let alone actually celebrated a holiday like christmas!

Still, most of her attention was on the man next to her, watching him carefully. She knew it was silly, but some part of her was worried that he’d disappear if she didn’t keep an eye on him. As Walter spoke, Kenny looked down at her, rolling his eyes and making a “yapping” motion with his hand.

It wasn’t even particularly funny, but Clementine giggled nonetheless, covering her mouth with her hand. Honestly, she was so blissed out with happiness in that moment that even the lamest of jokes would’ve gotten a laugh out of her.

Unfortunately, Walter chose that moment to turn around, on the top step of the stairs leading to the rest of the lodge. “What’s funny?” He asked, looking down at them with a quirked eyebrow.

“Oh, nothin’ Walt.” Kenny said, chuckling as he climbed the steps up to Walter’s level. With a smile, he slapped the other man on the back familiarly. “Walter here’s one smart son of a bitch.” he said, his southern accent making the words run together slightly.  _ “Makes a mean can a’ beans too.”  _ He added with a smirk.

Walter just shook his head amusedly. “Well, why don’t you two do some catching up while I get some dinner started?” He said, gesturing further back into the lodge, no doubt at some kitchen or cooking station she couldn’t see from where she was standing.

Clementine smiled slightly at their exchange. She knew from experience that trusting strangers was often a mistake, but Kenny seemed to be on good terms with them, and if  _ Kenny _ liked them, she knew she could trust these people.

Suddenly, she heard the door creak open behind her, and she turned to see Luke, Nick, Alvin, Rebecca, and Jessie walking through the door. Each of them was looking around, and she knew they were taking in the scenery like she had done. Well, most of them probably were. Knowing Jessie, she was scanning around for bandits waiting to ambush and kill them all.

Walter was the first to speak up. “Please, make yourselves at home.” He said invitingly. “You can leave your things by the benches over there.” 

Clementine’s friends looked over at the bench by the wall, and then back at Walter. None of them seemed particularly thrilled by his suggestion.

_ “The hell we will!” _ Rebecca said quickly, in a fiery tone.

“Yeah, I’m gonna hold on to my gun, thanks.” Nick added plainly.

_ Of course _ something like this had to happen. It wasn’t like anything could ever be  _ easy _ in her life now could it? Biting her lip nervously, Clementine looked to see Walter’s reaction.

“You’re our guests here.” Walter said soothingly, radiating a sense of calm Clementine wished she could feel in that moment. “There’s no need to worry.”

“Tell him to put his gun down, then.” Nick said, gesturing to Kenny, who stared intently at Nick and the others for a long moment.

Finally, he looked down at Clementine, who turned to face him directly, hoping he couldn’t see how worried she was. “Will you vouch for these people Clem?” He asked simply.

“Hey! You’re the one pointing a gun around, man!” Nick retorted.

“Hey! Hey, we’re cool, alright?” Luke said, stepping in to defuse the situation, much to Clementine’s relief. “Everything is  _ cool.” _

“They’re cool.” Clementine said, hoping Kenny would accept her words at face value. To be honest, she wasn’t really sure if she could say that Nick was  _ cool  _ after what he’d pulled at the bridge. Or Jessie for that matter, with how… Well…  _ Volatile  _ she could be. Really, Jessie was kinda the opposite of  _ cool.  _ Still,  _ most _ of them were completely fine, and she wasn’t about to leave them all out to dry.

Raising an eyebrow slightly, Kenny looked up to watch her groupmates, still looking slightly suspicious. They stared right back, and for a moment, both groups just watched each other, each waiting for the other to make the first move as Clementine looked back and forth between them.

Chewing on the inside of her cheek, Clementine was about to speak up again when she heard the door open once more. From behind Luke and the others, Carlos and Sarah walked in, Matthew and Sarita right beside them.

Immediately, the hispanic girl’s eyes seemed drawn towards the christmas tree Clementine had noticed when she first came in. Those brown eyes widened in surprise, and she started forward. “Look, Dad! A christmas tree!” She said eagerly. Before she could get very far however, Carlos grabbed her by the arm.

“Not now sweetie.” Carlos said, eyes sweeping over all of them, taking in the situation.

Sarita smiled at her enthusiasm. “Isn’t it great? We found all of this in storage.”

“It’s amazing.” Sarah agreed, looking around as she seemed to take in all of the pretty lights strung up throughout the lodge.

At that moment, Sarita gazed up at them, and a look seemed to pass between her and Kenny. With a barely perceptible sigh that Clementine almost didn’t catch, he walked back down the steps, placing his rifle on the black-and-white tiled floor by the bench. 

For a moment, nothing happened, and then Luke walked over, pulling his machete out of its sheath and placing it down on the bench itself. That opened the floodgates, and soon everyone else was placing their weapons on or around the bench. Clementine watched with a smile, and then stepped over to place her backpack down with everyone else’s things. She had no hammer anymore, having lost it fighting some walkers on the bridge. She’d have to find something else soon, but for the moment, she was content to enjoy a moment of safety.

At that particular moment though, Clementine saw something out of the corner of her eye that made her tense up. While everyone else filed away from the main entrance, Jessie remained standing by the bench, looking down at something in her hands.

Looking closer, Clementine realized that Jessie was holding her survival knife, still carefully kept in it’s sheath as she gripped it tightly in her hands. Watching the other girl, Clementine knew there was no way someone as paranoid as her was going to give up her only weapon in a strange place, with strange people. At least… Not without a fight.

Realizing she would have to get involved, Clementine stepped closer, until Jessie seemed to notice she was being watched. Looking up, her green eyes immediately locked with Clementine’s own tawny orbs, staring into them.

Narrowing her eyes, Clementine stared back, trying to mentally convey her message.  _ ‘Don’t you dare mess this up for me!’  _

Jessie must’ve seen  _ something  _ in Clementine’s eyes, because she glared back, spine straightening as she held onto her knife tightly. Her chin jutted out defiantly, like she was  _ daring  _ Clementine to do something about it.

Clenching her jaw, Clementine glared harder, not even blinking as she stared down the other girl intently. Her luck had changed in a way she never could’ve expected, and she wasn’t going to let anything, or  _ anyone,  _ ruin it for her. Her gaze intensified darkly as she stared at Jessie, wordlessly demanding she put down her  _ stupid knife. _

Blinking suddenly, Jessie broke off their staring contest as she seemed to almost  _ flinch  _ at Clementine’s hard look. For a moment or two, her gaze shifted between Clementine and the bench, back and forth, until finally, she silently set down her knife, right next to Luke’s Machete.

Suddenly, Sarita spoke up, startling Clementine. “If you would all like to follow me, I’ll show you where you can sleep!” 

At that, Jessie scurried past Clementine, not even making eye contact as she all but fled from the other girl. Clementine watched her go with a smirk, pleased with her victory, until she noticed Kenny gesturing for her to follow him. At once, her smirk was replaced by a happy grin as she followed behind, eager to spend some time with him.

* * *

She followed him to a small collection of chairs and a couch set up by the fireplace, and they settled onto the couch as Clementine looked at Kenny expectantly, waiting for him to make the first move.

For a moment, he just smiled at her, seemingly studying her, and she smiled back, quietly reveling in his company. At last, he spoke as he reached out to tap her hat with a finger.

“Still wearing this dirty ol’ thing, huh?” Kenny said goodnaturedly as he poked at her baseball cap, earning a small glare from Clementine. She quickly dropped it though, too happy to hold a grudge against him, even for somewhat insulting her hat.

What he said next put a damper on her mood, however…

“Y’know, I half-expected to see Lee walk up next to you.” Kenny said in a wistful tone. “You guys were like two peas in a pod…” He trailed off as Clementine felt a wave of sadness pass through her body like freezing water, extinguishing her good cheer, if only for a moment.  _ “Oh shit,  _ I didn’t mean to… It’s just hard not to think about, you know?” He frowned deeply at her, clearly upset with himself for bringing it up.

Not wanting to kill the conversation, Clementine pushed onwards, determined to talk about it, even if it hurt… “He saved me...” She said quietly, remembering all he had done to get her away from that stranger, and through the herd.

“I  _ knew it.  _ I knew he would.” Kenny said with a tone of absolute confidence. “That guy had a fire in him, sure as shit.” His expression grew sorrowful then. “Hell… He was one hell of a guy… When my son… Well, he took care of him. I’ll never forget that.”

They were silent for a second, remembering the people they had lost, until Kenny spoke up again. “So, where’d you end up?” He asked curiously, seemingly shaking off his sadness for the moment.

“I was with Christa and Omid for a long time.” Clementine said sadly, remembering what had happened to them. “Omid… He…” She gathered herself, and continued. “Christa and I were together for a while, but these guys caught us… She’s gone.”

Kenny looked down for a moment, then back up at her. “Sounds like it ain’t been easy for you out there… I’m sorry darling.” He said earnestly.

Clementine just nodded, grateful for his sympathy, even if she knew it couldn’t help the sadness she felt inside at all that had happened since she’d last seen him.

“I wish I could’ve found you sooner.” Kenny continued.  _ ‘Me too…’ _

“Christa…” Clementine started. “Christa told me you were dead.” She told him, thinking of how she’d bawled when she’d learned that her trusting of a stranger had gotten  _ so many people  _ killed.

“I am.” Kenny said dreamily, getting a glassy look in his eyes. “This is all a dream…” 

Clementine cringed at that, for the briefest of moments believing him, until he broke out into laughter, and she threw a half-hearted glare his way. “Jerk…” She muttered, angry at herself for falling for that, and angry at him for even  _ suggesting  _ that this could be a dream.

Kenny choked off his laughter at that, muttering a “Sorry,  _ sorry.  _ Bad joke. _ ”  _ As she crossed her arms, trying and failing to stay mad at him.

“What happened?” Clementine questioned. The way Christa had told it, Kenny was dead for sure, and yet, here he was!

“Well, for some reason I tried to save that shitbird Ben.” Kenny started, seemingly not noticing as Clementine cringed at his words. Ben had been her friend, despite everything, and it had broken her heart to learn he was dead. “Whole situation turned into a damn cluster. I couldn’t get him out, but I made it… Long story short, I got lucky.  _ Real  _ lucky.” He continued. That didn’t really explain  _ how  _ he’d survived, but Clementine supposed it was better than nothing. “Spent a long time alone after that. It… Uh…”

He paused for a long moment, and Clementine could read pain in his eyes. Those eyes shut for a moment, and then opened to focus on her once more. “And then I met Sarita,  _ thank god.”  _ He looked at Clementine with a smile. “Gosh! It’s great to have you back!”

Clementine nodded, smiling again. “I’m glad to be here.” She said honestly. It really was great to see Kenny again after so long. Just knowing she had someone else who understood what she’d gone through made her feel so much better.

“Looks to me like you’ve been doing pretty well for yourself at least.” Kenny said, a curious look in his eyes. “Say… How’d you meet those folks anyway?”

Shrugging, Clementine decided to be honest, though she left out a few details… “I met them all a week ago... I was in bad shape. They let me stay with them, and we’ve been together since.” No need to tell him about being locked in a shed for the moment. Clementine couldn’t imagine  _ that  _ going over well.

Kenny seemed to debate something for a moment, before opening his mouth. “That girl… I didn’t quite catch her name. I saw what happened back there. She gonna be a problem?”

Clementine thought carefully about how to respond to that. Sure Jessie could be downright  _ frustrating  _ to deal with, but could Clementine really just throw her under the bus? “Her name is Jessie… She’s a bit of a handful, but… I trust her. She saved my life.” She said earnestly. 

Despite all of her flaws, Jessie had stayed with her when all logic had pointed for her to just run and save herself. That meant something to Clementine, even if the other girl was kind of a jerk sometimes.

He nodded slowly at that. “Well, if she saved  _ your  _ life, then that makes her okay in my book.” Kenny smirked slightly. “Besides, from what I saw, it looks like you have her pretty well handled.”

Clementine smirked back, still proud of her earlier victory. “She’s really not as tough as she likes to think she is. You just need to not give in when she tries to push you around, and know when to push back.” Of course, that wasn’t exactly the best strategy for actually _ befriending _ her, but Clementine still hoped she’d come around one of these days.

Some day...

Eventually...

...Privately, Clementine wondered if Jessie had ever really  _ had  _ many friends. From what she’d said the night before, she didn’t seem to have much luck with getting other kids to like her. Of course, that was very likely a result of her abrasive personality more than anything. Still, Sarah seemed to like Jessie. That had to count for something, right? Of course, Sarah seemed pretty desperate for friends herself…

Clementine was shaken from her thoughts as Kenny chuckled, though before he could respond, Sarita walked up behind him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “You two catching up?” She asked with a smile. Her face was creased with a few wrinkles around her mouth and her warm, brown eyes, though if Clementine had to guess, she’d say they were more from smiling than anything else. She also couldn’t help but notice how familiar the two seemed with each other. She didn’t want to  _ assume _ anything, but...

Kenny turned to Sarita with a smile, though his words were directed at Clementine. “Clem, this is my girl Sarita. Ain’t she beautiful?” Clementine smiled at that, her suspicions confirmed. 

_ ‘So, he found someone to love again… I’m glad. He seems… Happier, than he was back then.’ _

“Nice to meet you Clementine.” Sarita said, a warm smile stretching her lips.

Just then, Kenny twisted around in his seat to holler at Walter as he passed by. “Hey, Walt! How’s that dinner comin’ along?”

“I’m just getting started with it now.” Walter said back. “Remember Kenny,  _ patience, _ is a virtue.”

Kenny rolled his eyes as he turned back to Clementine. “Smartass.” He muttered, shaking his head, though his smile robbed it of any bite.

Before either Clementine or Kenny could say anything else, Sarita had navigated around the couch they shared, stopping in front of Carlos and Sarah as they came down the stairs, with Luke, Nick, and Jessie not far behind.

With hardly a look in their direction, Jessie shuffled past them, evidently not interested in talking. Clementine didn’t bother to track where she went though, more interested in the conversation taking place in front of her.

“Carlos, right?” Sarita asked, though her confident tone made it clear she already knew the answer. “Mind if I steal your daughter for a secret mission?”

Carlos seemed caught off-guard for a moment, and then his expression turned to one of apprehension. No doubt his protective instincts towards his daughter were warring with his desire to remain civil with these new people. Finally, he seemed to come to a decision.

“Just stay in sight sweetie.” He said authoritatively.

With that, he turned and started climbing the stairs once more, perhaps in search of Rebecca and Alvin, who Clementine could only assume were still upstairs.

As he left, Luke stepped forward, with Nick just at his shoulder. “Anything we can do to help?” He questioned, an easy smile on his face. 

“Could use a hand outside.” Kenny said, standing up from the couch as Clementine watched, sad to see him go, but happy that Luke was making an effort to be friendly. “There’s a lotta supplies that need to come in before that storm hits. Matthew and I could handle it ourselves, but it’ll go a lot faster with some extra hands.”

“Sure thing.” Luke said, starting towards the door with Nick right behind him.

As he turned to leave, Kenny seemed to remember something, and he looked down at Clementine for a moment. “Clem, why don’t you help Walt with dinner?” Before she could even respond, he was walking away, making it clear that he expected her to just do it.

Frowning in disappointment that their time together had been cut short, Clementine watched him leave, hollering for Matthew to. “Get over here and help us with these damn boxes!” As much as she wanted to think otherwise, she couldn’t help but feel that her new task was just busywork to keep her out of the way. Still… Helping Walter cook sounded a lot easier than lifting heavy boxes, so she couldn’t complain  _ too  _ much... 

_ ‘Maybe just a little complaining…’  _ Clementine thought to herself.  _ ‘That’s perfectly healthy, right?’ _

Still, sitting on the couch wasn’t going to help anything. With a slight sigh, she pushed herself off the couch, standing to survey the lodge. Walter was easy to spot, working away in a kitchen in the far corner, and she started walking towards him, not in any particular rush.

As she marched across the room though, something caught her eye. Jessie was sitting alone, at one of the two dining tables situated near the kitchen that somewhat reminded Clementine of the ones at her school’s cafeteria, as fuzzy as those memories were. Slowly, she came to a stop in the center of the room as she studied the brunette, noticing that she seemed to be staring over at Walter, though he seemingly hadn’t noticed yet. Her curiosity peaked, Clementine decided to check in with the other girl before she got started with Kenny’s appointed task.

Jessie seemed to startle slightly as she noticed Clementine’s approach, having very clearly not been paying attention to her surroundings.  _ ‘That’s weird. Normally she’s so paranoid about staying alert…’  _

For a moment, Clementine worried that their earlier stand-off might’ve left some hard feelings on Jessie’s part, but as the girl’s eyes locked on to her, she saw no anger in those green orbs, only surprise, and a little bit of confusion. Coming to a stop in front of Jessie, she smiled in what she hoped would be taken as a friendly manner.

“Hey.” Jessie greeted simply, seemingly torn between looking at Clementine in front of her and Walter at his station as her head swiveled back and forth between them.

Clementine raised an eyebrow at her strange behaviour, but responded with an equally simple. “Hi…”

Jessie eyed her curiously, but remained silent, clearly waiting for Clementine to explain why she was there.

“What are you thinking about?” She continued after a moment, curious as to why Jessie seemed so distracted.

Jessie stared at her for a moment. “Things.” She said plainly, like  _ that  _ was a good enough answer to Clementine’s question.

“Pretty sure I could’ve guessed that myself.” Clementine said, giving Jessie an unimpressed look. Jessie huffed slightly, though whether it was in annoyance or amusement, Clementine couldn’t tell. She seemed to make up her mind about where to look, focusing solely on Walter and the kitchen.

Clementine followed her gaze for a moment, watching as Walter stirred a pot of…  _ Something.  _ “Are you hungry?” Clementine asked the other girl, fully able to sympathize with that motive. They were too far to catch a whiff of whatever was cooking, but just the thought of being so close to  _ real, cooked food  _ made her stomach rumble in discontent at the lack of food currently filling it.

Jessie looked back at her then, with a blank expression that somehow managed to convey pure contempt. “Well,  _ yeah.”  _ She said, like what Clementine had said was the most obvious thing in the world, which, in hindsight, it kind of  _ was.  _

They’d set out from the cabin with all the food they could carry, but they went through it fast on their journey. It didn’t help matters that  _ someone  _ hadn’t properly resealed a container that held most of their meat, causing it to go bad. No one had fessed up the mistake, and Clementine was pretty sure that no one ever would, seeing that it’d been days and no one had come forth. Food had been strictly rationed since then, and they’d searched for what they could, but they were pretty much out by the time they’d come to the bridge. No doubt everyone was pretty hungry at this point. 

_ ‘Soon…’  _ Clementine promised herself, sneaking another glance at the boiling pot Walter was working with.

To her surprise, Jessie’s expression softened then, and for a moment she seemed to debate something in her mind. Clementine remained carefully silent, not wanting to say anything that would interrupt whatever Jessie was thinking.

Finally, it seemed that Jessie had come to a decision, and she looked at Clementine, appearing surprisingly… Vulnerable?

“I  _ am  _ hungry.” Jessie’s tone was even, but Clementine could tell that there was some greater emotion lurking behind her words. “But… That’s not all of it…”

Clementine leaned in slightly, waiting for Jessie to continue. She wasn’t disappointed.

“My… My  _ dad…  _ Sometimes, he would let me help him cook. I didn’t get to do much, but… It was  _ nice _ spending time with him like that.” Her voice caught slightly as she mentioned her dad, and Clementine’s heart panged in sympathy, knowing that he must be dead. “This just made me think of that. That’s all.” She finished, voice regaining it’s even tone now that she was done.

For a moment, Clementine was surprised. It was…  _ Strange,  _ for Jessie to be so open about her past, but, then again, maybe this memory wasn’t quite as painful for the other girl. It was even possible that talking last night had made her more open to discussing this sort of thing, but Clementine doubted that theory. Jessie didn’t seem to be the sort of person who would share much about herself, even if she wasn’t traumatized by past experiences.

Clementine thought for a moment, looking over at Walter, and then back to the girl in front of her. The solution seemed obvious to her.

“Why don’t you go and talk to him?” Clementine asked, wondering if this was Jessie being paranoid or Jessie being stubborn.

Jessie’s eyes widened comically at that. “What?! No!” She said loudly, only to immediately cringe at her volume. She looked around for a moment, presumably to see if anyone had noticed her outburst, but Clementine remained focused on her.

“Why not?” She questioned. Clementine already had a few ideas as to  _ why,  _ but that didn’t mean she thought they were  _ good  _ reasons for not talking to the man. He seemed friendly enough, and it would probably do Jessie some good to actually talk to someone outside of Sarah, Clementine, or very rarely some other member of their group. Maybe it would help her get over her fear of people.

The brunette looked at Clementine like she’d just asked the stupidest question in the world.

_ “Are you kidding?  _ We don’t  _ know  _ these people Clem. Well, I mean, you know that one guy…” Jessie had a questioning look in her eyes as she mentioned Kenny, and Clementine knew she was curious about how she knew the man. Unfortunately for Jessie, that wasn’t Clementine’s focus at the moment.

“Then let’s  _ get to know them.”  _ Clementine retorted. “I’m going over to help him anyway, so you can just come with me.” It was perfect. Clementine could fulfill her task,  _ and  _ help out Jessie at the same time.

“I don’t  _ need  _ you to hold my hand…” Jessie muttered bitterly, pride clearly stung by the suggestion.

Clementine suppressed a groan at Jessie’s words. “I’m not gonna hold your hand. I’m going over there with or without you. I was just offering in case you wanted to go…”

She waited for a moment, and when Jessie gave no response, she sighed, and turned to continue on her way. Just as Clementine took a step towards Walter and the kitchen, she heard Jessie speaking in a faint whisper behind her.

_ “Fine…” _

Clementine turned back around. “What?” She asked, not sure if she’d heard right…

_ “I said fine.”  _ Jessie spat out. She seemed rather apprehensive about what she was doing, but she stood from the table gamely, shoulders hunched in resignation.

Clementine smiled brightly at those words. “That’s great! I think it’s a good thing for you to-”

_ “Don’t.”  _ Jessie bit out sharply. Her voice softened at that point. “Let’s just go.” She muttered. Walking past Clementine.

For a moment, Clementine felt bad, but then she remembered how Jessie had acted back at the river, and she decided that getting Jessie more used to other people was the best possible thing for her, even if she didn’t appreciate it right now. Plus, it wasn’t like she was  _ forcing  _ Jessie to go along with this. The other girl chose to come with her all on her own, and if she wanted to be cranky about it, well, that was her problem. Following Jessie closely, it was a short walk over to Walter.

“Hey girls, settling in well?” Walter greeted them, looking up from the boiling pot on the stove as they approached. The counter was between him and them, coming up to about Clementine’s stomach, though it was still too tall for her to see what was in the pot from where she was.

“Yeah, thanks.” Clementine answered truthfully.

“Sure.” Jessie responded, not nearly as enthusiastic.

If Walter was offput by her lackluster response, he didn’t show it. “Excellent! Want to help me prepare a little dinner?”

Nodding, Clementine leaned over, pushing herself up by the tips of her toes to see what he was cooking. Before she even saw in, she detected a faint fruity scent, but as she gazed into the pot, she came to the realization that she had  _ no idea _ what she was looking at.

Before she could ask any questions about the brown mass of lumps he was boiling, Walter was moving ahead with the conversation.

“So, how do you know Kenny?” He questioned curiously. To her left, Clementine noticed Jessie perk up at that. From her earlier words, it was clear that she also had an interest in finding out how Kenny and Clementine were connected. It was funny in a way. Before, Clementine had been the one prying for information. Now the shoe was on the other foot.

_ ‘Oh well. It’s not like I’m trying to keep my past a secret or anything, unlike someone around here…’  _ She thought sardonically, though she knew Jessie couldn’t hear her.

“We’re old friends. I was with him in a group, after it happened…”

“When he was with Lee? Yeah, he only told us a little about that.”

_ ‘Oh… I guess Kenny told them a little already…’ _

It wasn’t any easier hearing about Lee now than it was when Kenny had spoken of him, but Clementine tried not to show how it affected her. Walter gave her a sympathetic look that told her she had failed.

Peering to her side, she noticed Jessie watching her, a questioning look in her eyes. Sighing, Clementine decided she might as well offer an explanation.

“Lee was the man I mentioned back at the cabin… The one who took care of me.” She told the other girl, who nodded understandingly. Jessie had a knowing look in her eye, one that surprised Clementine. It was a look which told her that the other girl  _ understood,  _ or at least, thought she did. Clementine smiled slightly, grateful for the support but not wanting to talk about it right then.  _ ‘I wonder if this is how Jessie felt when I made her think about her past.’ _

.Walter looked down at the pot, talking as he stirred slowly. “Connecting with people is  _ so  _ important.” He said with conviction. “I don’t know what I’d do without Matthew.”

Clementine thought back to how Matthew had given Rebecca food, and brought them to the lodge in the first place, even after Nick nearly shot him. “He seems really nice.”

“Yeah.” Jessie agreed. “It’s almost hard to believe…”

Evidently noticing Jessie’s suspicious tone, Walter just smiled. “I know it can be strange to meet someone so friendly these days, but that’s just how he’s always been. He’s just naturally good.” His smile grew. “Anytime things seem hard, or I worry about what’s going to happen next, I can just look at him to remind myself how  _ lucky  _ I am, having a partner like him to help me through this.”

Clementine smiled at his optimism, only to tilt her head slightly as her brain caught up with Walter’s choice of words.  _ ‘Partner? Why not just say friend…?’  _ It was Jessie who said something about it though.

“Partner? So like, you’re  _ together? _ Like a couple?”

Clementine’s eyes widened in surprise at Jessie’s words.  _ ‘Wait, does she really mean…? Is that really a thing?’ _

Walter stopped stirring for a moment, and he looked at them, a strange expression on his face. “Yes, we are… Does that make you uncomfortable?” He seemed almost… Nervous?

Jessie just shook her head. “What? No. My mom had a friend at work who was like that. He couldn’t really talk about it, but she knew, and she never cared. I don’t care either.”

He smiled brightly at that, though it dimmed slightly as he turned back to Clementine. She thought carefully about what to say for a moment. “So… You and Matthew… Are like Kenny and Sarita?” 

Walter nodded at her. “Yes, it’s  _ exactly  _ like that.”

Clementine processed that for a minute more, and then smiled, her mind made up. “I think that’s probably a good thing then. I’m glad you have someone like that to be with you.” She told him earnestly.

She’d seen how much having someone to love could help a person get through hard times. Kenny and Katjaa, Omid and Christa, Alvin and Rebecca, and now Kenny and Sarita. If Walter had someone like that to help him, then Clementine was happy for him. That was all there was to it.

Walter released a breath she hadn’t realized he was holding, and smiled brightly at both of them. He studied them for a moment, and then turned his attention back to the pot in front of him. “Gosh, you remind me of my students. I can’t imagine what it’s like having to grow up in the middle of all this.” He shook his head sadly as he stirred. “It can’t be easy, I know that.”

“Everyone always underestimates me.” Clementine complained, thinking of how many times she’d been overruled or told what to do in the past week alone.

He gave her a conspiratorial look. “I imagine you use that to your advantage sometimes.”

Clementine stared at him for a moment, then smirked.  _ “Sometimes.”  _ She confirmed, thinking of that one bandit who’d been with Christa, who’d tried to attack her, only to end up outwitted and outmaneuvered until a walker had taken a chunk out of him. Jessie snickered next to her, and they both turned to look at her.

“And how about you?” Walter questioned. That seemed to temper her amusement, as her expression grew downcast.

“I… I guess… I’m still here.” She said with a shrug. Clementine and Walter gave her twin looks of sympathy, and she wrinkled her nose in distaste. “So, Walter…” She said suddenly, seemingly eager to change the subject. “You said you were a teacher? What level?” Even if it was merely an attempt to deflect attention away from herself, Clementine could see real interest in Jessie’s eyes.  _ ‘Okay, this is good. She’s warming up to him already.’ _

He smiled softly at that, though something told Clementine that he’d noticed what Jessie was doing. “Middle school. I was a history teacher. If I’m guessing right, you two look right about the age where you’d be entering that level of schooling, right?”

Jessie nodded, though Clementine merely shrugged, unsure of her exact age. It was hard keeping track of time beyond basic seasons these days.

“My dad was a teacher…” Jessie said suddenly. She looked surprised by her own words, and Clementine felt the same way.  _ ‘Huh… Maybe she really is starting to open up…’ _

Walter just smiled encouragingly. “Really? What was his subject?”

“My dad taught english. He was a high school teacher.” Jessie continued, gaining confidence as she spoke, though there was a slight twinge in her voice that betrayed the sadness she must surely have felt to be talking about her father.

“You know, if I hadn’t gotten a job teaching history, english would’ve definitely been my second choice.”

Jessie leaned in to put her hand on the counter. “Cool. Does that mean you read a lot? My dad pretty much had his own personal library back home.”

“I do read quite a bit…” Walter started. “But I prefer quality over quantity.” If you’re looking for something more casual to read, then Matthew is amassing quite the collection. He goes through books like a beaver goes through trees.”

Clementine giggled slightly at the mental image of the asian man chomping down on books, only to turn her head in surprise when Jessie chuckled next to her. As she watched the other girl smile, real amusement in her eyes, she realized that Jessie was  _ actually _ enjoying herself! _ ‘This is going better than I expected!’ _

For a moment, Walter went back to stirring, only to scoop some food out of the pot and bring it to his lips, giving a slight “Mm.” As he tasted it. “This should be almost done.” He said, satisfaction in his tone. He turned to Jessie. “Would you do me the honor of tasting the first course, miss?” He offered, holding out the spoon.

To Clementine’s surprise, Jessie simply nodded, and leaned in until the spoon touched her lips. Pulling back, the brunette seemed to take a moment to process the flavour, until finally, she nodded quickly. “It’s pretty good!” She said with a smile, as Clementine leaned over the pot to take another look at the strange contents. “What is it?” Jessie asked.  _ ‘Glad I’m not the only one who doesn’t know.’ _

“Le Walter Surprise.” He said with a slight flourish. “An autumnal legume salad with a peach roux.” Clementine’s head tilted slightly, as she tried in vain to figure out what it was he just said. Nexto to her, she could see Jessie frown in confusion, which at least made her feel better about not understanding. Walter gave them a sardonic look. “Peaches and beans. It’s all we got.”

As they nodded in new understanding, Walter looked down at an empty can left sitting on the counter, no doubt left over from the meal he was preparing. “Huh.” He picked it up and showed it to them. “Striking resemblance.”

It was immediately clear what he was talking about. On the label of the can, there was a little girl peeking out from behind the lettering. She had dark brown pigtails, blue coveralls, and a red shirt. Clementine frowned at the label, not liking his little comparison.  _ ‘What? That doesn’t look like me! I don’t look like that at all!’ _

Before she could offer protest however, a giggle came from next to her that made her frown deepen as she realized that things were about to get  _ much  _ worse.

Turning her head reluctantly, she looked at Jessie, who had the expression of someone who’d just been told that christmas was coming early this year. The grin on her face only widened as her eyes turned to Clementine. “Wow! It really does look like you!”

“No it doesn’t!” Clementine denied loudly, cheeks burning with embarrassment.

“It totally does!” Jesse retorted. The girl’s grin widened further, if that was even possible, as an idea seemed to pop into her head. “I think… That I’m gonna call you Peaches from now on.”

“Please don’t.” Clementine whimpered. Part of her wanted to show Jessie  _ exactly  _ how she felt about that nickname, but the rest of her knew that starting a scene in front of Walter would just make things worse for her.

Jessie’s grin sharpened evilly, no doubt sensing Clementine’s mortification. “Too late! You’re Peaches now!”

Clementine was  _ really  _ starting to get a sense for why Jessie didn’t get along with other kids, but before she could say anything else, though she didn’t know whether it would be to beg her to stop or insult her, Walter’s laughter cut them off.

Both girls turned to Walter as he chuckled, having evidently been observing their little spat. As he noticed their attention, he managed to bring himself under control. “Sorry… It’s just nice to see kids acting like kids again.” He sighed. “Anyway, I’d better get the bowls ready. I’ll call for you when everything’s all set up, unless one of you would like to help me?”

Before Clementine could even offer her assistance, Jessie was scooting around the counter to stand next to Walter as he picked up the pot. “Sure.” She said simply, though with more enthusiasm than when she’d first walked up to Walter.

“Excellent. I’ll fill the bowls, you just arrange them on the tables…” They walked off together, and Clementine watched them go, somewhat shocked, but ultimately happy to see Jessie getting along with someone, even if she  _ was  _ a jerk.  _ ‘Wait a second…’  _ She thought, something occurring to her as she stood there.  _ ‘I never even helped Walter with anything! We just talked for a while and then Jessie took over.’  _ Clementine sighed.  _ ‘I guess it doesn’t matter anyway. I don’t think Kenny actually expected Walter to need help. He just wanted me out of the way. At least I was able to help Jessie a little…’ _

Happy that she’d at least managed to accomplish  _ something,  _ Clementine decided to check around for the others while she waited for dinner. It would be nice to see what everyone else was doing, and what they thought of this place...

* * *

Immediately, Clementine made a beeline for the christmas tree, where Sarah and Sarita were hard at work decorating it with various bits and baubles from some cardboard boxes at their feet. As she approached, she was immediately conscripted into their efforts, as she grabbed a few decorations and got to work, carefully hanging them from the various branches of the tree, which on closer inspection, seemed to be made of plastic.

While Clementine looked for the perfect place for the ornament in her hand, Sarita had something to say. “You knew Kenny before. It must be incredible to see him again.” Clementine stopped her work as the older woman continued. “When I met him… Well, he’s so different now.”

“How’d you meet Kenny?” Clementine questioned. She hoped Kenny hadn’t been alone for too long after Savannah…

“I found him holed up in an old restaurant, if you can believe it.”

“Holed up?”

“You should’ve seen his beard then.” Sarita said with amusement in her tone.  _ ‘Wait, so it was even longer than it is now?’  _ Clementine thought to herself. Part of her would’ve liked to see that.

At that moment, Sarita looked up, and Clementine realized that Sarah had finished up decorating while they were talking. “Perfect.” The indian woman said. “Now we just need the topper.”

“We always had an angel on top of our tree.” Sarah said softly, clutching her arm as she looked at them.

“My family didn’t celebrate christmas.” Sarita replied. “But I still love the decorations.”

_ ‘I guess I’ll keep an eye out for a tree topper then. Not sure where I’d find one…’ _

With the tree all decorated except for the topper, Clementine decided to continue looking for the others. Luke and Nick were outside with Matthew and Kenny, so she’d leave them for last… Carlos had gone upstairs. Hopefully if she found him, she’d find Alvin and Rebecca as well.

Climbing the stairs next to the tree, Clementine was immediately confronted with several voices as she reached the top.

“Do you think they’re still following us?” Came Rebecca’s voice, sounding quite nervous.

“We can’t be sure.” That was Carlos, giving a less than reassuring answer.

While the walkway continued all around the building, Clementine’s targets of interest were all located in an alcove just to the side of the staircase. It contained several bookcases with a few books still in them, some paintings, a coffee table, and a few chairs, one of which Rebecca was sitting in as Alvin and Carlos stood on either side of her.

“It’s been a week man.” Alvin spoke up. “We gotta be out of the woods now.” They all turned to look at Clementine for a moment as she walked up, but didn’t say anything to her, engrossed in their own conversation.

“We can’t be sure.” Carlos insisted, crossing his arms. “They might be tracking us.”

“Tracking?” Avlin said incredulously. “Who the hell do you think they are, ninjas?” 

Finally, Rebecca looked at Clementine. “What do you think Clem? Do you think they’d still be following us after this long?”

Everyone looked at her, and Clementine felt rather put on the spot. “I… I don’t know. Why would they want you back so badly anyway?” She asked. She knew they’d escaped from Carver’s camp, but she didn’t understand why he’d chase after them like that. Surely it couldn’t be worth all the time and effort?

None of them answered, merely looking at each other for a few moments, until finally Carlos spoke up. “Regardless, we shouldn’t take any chances. We leave in the morning.” He said firmly.

“But we’re safe here for tonight, right?” Rebecca questioned.

Carlos seemed to think for a moment, and he turned to Clementine. “Clementine, you and Jessie spoke to that man, Walter. What did he say?”

Clementine shrugged. “We mostly talked about Kenny… And school.” 

She wasn’t sure what Carlos expected her to say, but it clearly wasn’t that. He crossed his arms, looking down at her with his dark eyes. “School? Really?” He said, skepticism in his yeah.

“Yeah.” Clementine confirmed. What, did he think she was  _ lying _ to him or something?

“Listen.” Alvin said firmly. “I don’t care  _ what  _ that man said. We’re staying here tonight.”

Carlos looked at him a moment, then back to Clementine. “Just make sure to talk to the rest of them. They trust you. See what you can find out.” He turned to the others before she could respond. “I’m going to find Luke.” And with that, he hurried down the stairs.

Clementine rolled her eyes. Did Carlos really expect her to  _ spy  _ on these people. He was even more paranoid than  _ Jessie! _ At least she didn’t drag anyone else into it.

As he left, Rebecca put a hand to her head, suddenly looking a bit woozy. “Honey, I don’t feel so good.” She breathed out to Alvin.

Immediately, Alvin was leaning down by her side. “Bec, what’s wrong?” He asked quickly, frowning in concern.

“I just need something to drink.” She said quietly.

Immediately, Alvin was on the move, making his way to the stairs. “You got it. I’ll be right back.” he disappeared down the steps, his heavy footsteps able to be heard all the way down as he hurried.

“Are you okay?” Clementine asked, concerned. The journey had been especially hard on Rebecca due to her pregnancy. Hopefully some rest would do her some good.

Rebecca looked at her with weak eyes. “Just got a little dizzy, that’s all.” She said, giving what she probably thought was a reassuring smile, but which really made Clementine worry more. The failed smile fell from her lips as she suddenly looked very tired. “I can’t even take care of myself. How am I supposed to raise a child? I mean, how can anyone now? Everything’s so fucked up…”

“I think it’s possible.” Clementine offered in encouragement. After all,  _ she  _ was still alive.

“How would you know.” Rebecca bit out heatedly. Clementine didn’t take it personally though. She’d seen Rebecca lash out at several people over the course of their journey, and she knew the pregnant woman didn’t mean it. She was just under a lot of pressure.

Clementine smiled humorously. “Well… I’m still here.” She pointed out.

Eyes widening for a moment, Rebecca remained silent at that. “...I know it’s gonna be hard.” She said finally, voice soft. “But at the same time… I already feel a little less lonely.” She patted her belly. “Because I know, that no matter what, I’ll get to meet someone new.”

Rebecca’s hand paused on her stomach, her eyes widening in surprise. “She’s kicking.” She said quickly, looking up at Clementine. “Want to listen?”

A bit nervous, Clementine stepped closer to the pregnant woman. “Can I?” She said quietly, already leaning down to press her ear against Rebecca’s abdomen. Her eyes widened as she heard the baby kick, and she pulled away smiling.

“She’s gonna be a runner.” Rebecca said confidently, a smile on her lips. Suddenly, that smile disappeared, and she looked away for a moment, her hand in front of her face. Finally, she looked back up at Clementine. “It’s not his.” She said plainly, fear on her face. Clementine’s eyes widened.

She’s already known that the baby might not be Alvin’s when she’d listened to Rebecca in the bathroom, but to hear the woman directly say it… “Whose is it?” She asked, unable to think of anything else to say.

The older woman looked to be on the verge of crying. “If he finds out, he’ll kill me.” She whispered nervously, as though he was hiding just out of sight to catch her. “I… I don’t know what to  _ do…  _ Heh, I can’t believe I’m asking a little girl for advice.” Rebecca shrugged. “But I guess nothing’s weird anymore…”

“He won’t kill you.” Clementine said earnestly. From everything she’d seen of the man, Clementine just didn’t think he’d have it in him to do something like that. He’d be upset for sure, but he was too nice of a man to do anything…  _ Hasty. _

Rebecca looked past her, eyes widening as familiar footsteps rumbled up the stairs. “There’s my man!” She said cheerfully, as though their conversation had never happened.

“You alright baby?” Alvin asked her softly, a bottle of water clutched in his large hand.

“I’m fine you big dope.” Rebecca responded, standing up to receive the water, a loving look on her face.

Clementine smiled. It was clear that they loved each other. As hard as things would be, she couldn’t help but feel that things would be fine between them.

“Thanks for staying with her Clem.” Alvin said warmly, and Clementine nodded at him, happy to have been of service.

As she prepared to head back down, she noticed an open box near the wood railing. Something laying within caught her eye, and she leaned down to inspect it…

Tree toppers! Just what she was looking for! Sarita must’ve forgotten them up here, or whoever was here last had left them. There was a golden, five-pointed star, and an angel to choose from. Clementine inspected both of them carefully, trying to decide which one to use.

She personally liked the star, thinking it was very pretty, but at the same time, she remembered Sarah mentioning how her family had always used an angel for their tree… Sighing, she picked up the angel topper, and went over to the top of the stairs, where she could  _ just  _ lean far enough to affix it to the top of the christmas tree. Looking down, she could see Sarah smiling up at her work. “Wow! She’s so pretty.” Sarah exclaimed. Despite her disappointment at not using the star, Clementine couldn’t help but smile at Sarah’s happiness. 

“Beautiful.” Sarita agreed. “I used to love this time of year.” She looked up at Clementine. “You know, now that your friends are here, this place is starting to feel like a real home.” She said warmly.

Clementine descended the stairs as Sarita continued on. “Walter and Matthew are amazing people.” She said, smiling. “Honestly, it’s dangerous to be this kind, but they just can’t help it. When Kenny and I first came here, Matthew called me  _ Rita,  _ So I call him  _ Matty  _ now. It’s sort of our little war.”

“I’m really glad to be here.” Clementine said earnestly. 

Sarita got a strange look on her face then. “I’ve been meaning to ask you… Does Kenny seem…  _ Different,  _ to you? I didn’t know him before, and, well, I’m curious. I mean, he has  _ good days,  _ and  _ bad days,  _ like anyone else… But lately I get the feeling he’s… Struggling.”

He does seem different than I remember.” Clementine said, thinking of her interactions with the man.

“In what way?”

Clementine shrugged. “I’m not sure… I think he’s  _ happier,  _ then when I last saw him.”

“Well you three have been busy.” A familiar voice called out, as Kenny came up from behind Sarita. Clementine nearly jumped, surprised by his sudden appearance.  _ ‘How did he sneak up on us like that?’ _

Sarita turned around, clearly just as startled. “Kenny!” She cried cheerfully. “Isn’t it great.” She moved to pick up one of the boxes of decorations she’d been taking from, and he immediately stepped over to help.

“I’ve got it hun.” He said, hands gripping the box she was lifting.

“Sarita gave him a look. “I think I can manage Ken-”

_ “I said I got it!”  _ Kenny said more aggressively as he yanked the box from her hold.

Clementine stared at his back as he walked away.  _ ‘Okay… That’s more like the Kenny I remember…’ _

Sarita didn’t seem fazed though. “Always has to play the gentlemen.” She said, shaking her head. “But I’ll tell you, when I met him, he couldn’t even lift a fly.”

Before Clementine could say anything to that, Walter’s voice rang out through the lodge.  _ “Well everyone, dinner is served! C’mon, let’s eat!” _

Clementine smiled brightly at that, her stomach grumbling at the promise of food as everyone started filing towards the tables.  _ ‘Okay then. Worry about Kenny later! Food now!’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. We learn some more about Jessie and her parents this chapter! Technically you already knew that her dad was a teacher from her thoughts in the last chapter, but I wanted Clementine to know that as well, so here you go.
> 
> 2\. Matthew and Walter's relationship is more clearly addressed than it was in the game. I hope I did a good enough job of portraying it. I'm not gay myself, so I worry at what people will think of my handling, but hopefully this is acceptable. I felt it was important to get it in here for several reasons...
> 
> 3\. We get to see Jessie open up here, especially with Walter. I really like Walter, and I think that if anyone could get her to chill with the paranoia, it would be him. He's very kind and approachable.
> 
> 4\. One last thing. Eric and Calvin, the guys mentioned in Jessie's story from the last chapter, are actually a reference to a youtube channel. I forgot to mention it last time, so here you go. You get fake internet points if you can guess what channel they're from. I'll give you want hint: It's a fairly popular reaction channel.


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